Weathered
by Weathergirl
Summary: She turned in her badge and said goodbye to her partner... No one's heard from her since. Post-Loyalty that fills in the gap up to Rispetto.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N… Here's another multi-chapter fic. It's basically a post-ep from Loyalty II which fills in the gap up to Rispetto (obviously, taking a pretty big fictional detour :). If you liked Storm Front and Turbulence, you'll be happy. This has the angst, suspense, hurt/comfort and twists from both stories. B/A is a very big element here. **_**And did I mention the twists…?**_** ;)**

**The storyline is about rape, so there is some SVU in the beginning. Their involvement tapers off. It's not a true crossover in my opinion, but SVU characters are a good complement to this story as it's developing. If you know the basics about SVU, you're fine. It's the original group (i.e., Stabler, Benson, Munch, Tutola, Cragen, etc…).**

**I wrote this one in third person, because it worked out a little better. It's almost entirely told through Alex's and Bobby's perspectives. **

**NOTE: The 'PAST' is immediately after Loyalty part II and the 'PRESENT' is about two weeks later. **

* * *

_**~ PAST ~**_

_**(Early evening)**_

Alex enters her apartment. As the door closes behind her, she releases a heavy sigh. She did what she had to do. Admittedly, she'd love to be Captain, but not at the expense of losing Bobby.

Petey lets out a series of chirps, then shuffles over on his perch to greet her. Alex turns toward her little welcoming committee with a smile. "Hi, Petey."

Petey is a blue-gray parakeet. She got him about six months ago. She hadn't planned on replacing Polly after the Jo Gage incident a few years back. But Petey is very sweet, good company and quite the talker. Her neighbor comes by to feed him during the week, usually whenever she's working late or is out of town.

"Petey biiiirrrrrrrrrrd," he vocalizes to her.

"I guess you want to eat," she says, retrieving his food and water dishes to replace the contents with a fresh supply in both.

"Petey pie! Petey pie! Petey biiiirrrrrrrrrrrd!" he mimics joyfully, shuffling on his perch as Alex goes into the kitchen.

She chuckles. Well, he does make coming home alone a little more pleasant. She opens the door to his cage to set the dishes back in and he jumps on her hand.

"What are you doing, silly boy?"

Petey eyes the perch beside his food dish for a moment but doesn't move.

"You wanna come out?"

He makes his choice by staying right where he is. She carefully lifts him out of the cage and walks over to the couch. Petey walks up her wrist and settles on her forearm.

She reaches over and gently rubs his neck feathers with the edge of her finger. "What's up, sweetie? Did you miss me?"

Thoughts of the past few days come flooding back… _Captain Ross is killed. Hassan goes free. Captain pro-temp is offered on the condition that she fire Bobby. _

She pulls her feet up onto the couch and her eyes dampen with tears.

_Why did Captain Ross take that assignment? Why did Bobby have to push this? _

"_You think he's the money trail?"  
_

"_I am going to try and find out."  
_

"_I really feel I should try to talk you out of this."  
_

"_But that's always been a wasted effort…"_

Then again, if he hadn't, they never would have found out the truth.

Minutes later, she stirs out of her reflections and glances toward her arm. Petey has one foot pulled up and his head nestled on his back. He's sleeping soundly.

She taps him gently with her finger and his eyes open. "Come on, Petey pie... Time to go back to your cage." He gets on her finger and rides back. After he's inside, he begins fixing his feathers.

She wanders around her apartment for a moment, trying to decide what to do. Food's not really on her mind. She could use a drink though.

She thinks about Bobby again. More than likely, he's figured out that she quit and he won't be happy.

She wants to see how he's doing.

She debates it for another minute, then collects her things, goes to her car and heads for Brooklyn.

** x x x**

* * *

He's just been fired from Major Case.

Back at his apartment, Bobby wanders into the kitchen for his bottle of Scotch. He's disappointed to find that it barely has a tablespoon left.

_Dammit,_ he groans. It didn't even cross his mind to hit the liquor store on the way home. He's pondering whether to go to the liquor store or the bar, when he hears a knock at the door.

He already knows who it is. He heads for the door to answer it.

"Hi Eames…" He greets her, then steps aside and allows her to enter.

She wanders in a few paces before she turns back to face him. "I wanted to know if you'd like to have a drink with me."

"You did it, didn't you…?" he asserts. It's hardly a question, because he already knows the answer. The door is released from his hand, but it doesn't close completely.

Out comes a heavy sigh. "Well, what would you have done?"

"That's not the point! You had more reasons to stay than me."

"That's not true. You may have messed up, and I still wish I had figured out a way to stop you, but they were already gunning for you, Bobby. Without Captain Ross, they had one less obstacle. I couldn't stand to see them use Ross's death as an opportunity to take you down."

"What's done is done and I can't take it back," he replies. "But you were promoted to Captain pro-temp. To me, that's about the best thing to come out of this mess. Why are you going to throw that away?"

"Dammit Bobby, just stop it right there! You're not less of a cop than me and I wish you'd stop thinking that! Why would I want to be Captain of Major Case, _even temporarily_, when I can't keep the best people? I did what I had to do and you're not going to change my mind." She folds her arms and glares back at him.

_Damned stubborn woman. _She's loyal to a fault, and he doesn't know what he did to deserve it.

He backs up a few paces to the door, checks to make sure he has his keys and wallet on him, then grabs his jacket. "C'mon… First round's on me."

They leave his apartment and head for her car. While at the bar, there's a mention of getting dinner. They decide on Italian and he knows a good spot in Midtown.

Soon the conversations about Ross, Bobby getting fired and her resigning taper off. They stick with old cases or random topics.

They have a great time. The job pressure is off. They set the unknowns about the future aside to laugh and enjoy each other's company.

As the plates are taken away, Alex says that she wants to make a stop in Inwood to let her dad know about her resignation before the news breaks. Bobby tells her to go ahead and he'll catch the subway back to Brooklyn.

They say their goodbyes. Alex stops to use the restroom before she leaves and Bobby heads for the subway.

_** x**_

* * *

_**~ PRESENT ~**_

It's his second week with the Bureau. He didn't expect a job to just fall into his lap when he left Major Case, but basically it did.

The offer came the day after he was fired. He'd seen too many weeks of suspension without pay, so he couldn't exactly turn it down.

Most of his work would involve domestic terrorism. It didn't sound like a bad deal in all honesty.

The first week was spent in training at Quantico. They needed his expertise on a few pending cases, so the rest of the training was postponed for a later date. From Quantico, they sent him to Chicago for a day and a half, then to Houston for two days, before he returns to New York.

He got in yesterday afternoon.

If he doesn't see the inside of an airport or hotel lobby for a very long time, he won't be disappointed.

He likes the new job, he likes his boss and aside from the travel, he has no complaints.

The transition from police detective to special agent isn't a problem. He'll eventually get a partner.

Whomever it is will never replace Eames.

When he gets back in town, he decides to call and invite her for drinks and dinner, so he can tell her about his new job.

But she never answers. The call goes to voice mail and she doesn't call him back.

_**x x x**_

Bobby's eyes drift back to the computer monitor and he re-starts the video link.

He's been watching surveillance clips, testimonies and interviews for the bulk of the morning. Someone that the FBI's been tracking resurfaced during a riot at the campus of Hudson University.

He remains focused on the clip until he hears someone calling his name. He turns around and sees the desk agent trying to get his attention.

"Agent Goren, you have visitors."

He stops the clip once more, stands and follows them to the front desk. Detectives Olivia Benson and Elliot Stabler from Manhattan SVU are waiting for him.

They all know each other, of course. Back when he worked with Major Case, he'd see them at one of the cop-frequented bars in Manhattan or around the courthouse.

They're a well-respected team in the NYPD. It's not many who can routinely and successfully handle rape and child molestation cases for as long as these two have.

He greets each one with a handshake. "Benson…Stabler… Nice to see you both. What can I do for you?"

"You got a few minutes?" Elliot asks.

"Sure," he replies.

Olivia glances around the lobby hesitantly and then directs her gaze back to Bobby. "Is there some place we can speak privately?"

He nods and escorts them down the main hallway into one of the available conference rooms.

Inside is a large table that seats about twelve. In the corner is a heavy duty ladder that is propped up against the wall with a metal tool box sitting on the top rung. There is a missing ceiling panel with some wires sticking out. Looks like someone might have been doing some repairs.

The two detectives take a seat at the table, Bobby closes the door and takes a seat across from them. "What's this about?" he asks.

"We've got a case we're working…," Elliot begins gingerly. "We're hoping you might be able to help us."

"Okay…shoot," Bobby agrees.

"So far, three women have turned up at the East River raped, sodomized, beaten and then killed. Cause of death is usually asphyxiation or drug overdose," Elliot explains. "There are a couple more missing. It's the only a matter of time before they turn up, unless we find this guy."

He nods slowly. "Okay."

Olivia opens the padded envelope she brought with her and removes a DVD case and a file folder containing some loose pictures. She sets them in front of her, but doesn't present them. "The victims are all single, all live alone. He sends SVU a DVD of himself raping these women—we never see his face, just his gloved hands. Two weeks after receiving the DVD, we find the body. No fingerprints. He cleans his tracks."

He eyes the DVD and photos, and then looks across the table at them. "I'm still not sure why you'd come to me with this. I had no open cases dealing with rape when I left. Detective Nichols took over my caseload. You've been to Major Case, I assume?"

Elliot and Olivia exchange a wary glance.

"What are you _not_ telling me?" Bobby asks plainly.

Olivia sighs, lifting the DVD beside her. "The woman in the latest DVD…_is Alex Eames_."

"_What?"_

"Looks like this creep's abducted your former partner as his latest victim," Elliot adds. "We've talked to friends, family, Major Case… No one's seen or heard from her since she turned in her badge about two weeks ago..."

_** x**_

* * *

_**~ PAST ~**_

_**(Midtown Manhattan)**_

Alex exits the restaurant and heads for her car. She parked about three and a half blocks away from the restaurant.

She's suddenly very tired and anxious to get home. She'll make her stop in Inwood as brief as possible. Just give them the news and head home. They can catch up another time.

The usual back alley odors make her re-think her short cut, but she's three quarters of a city block closer to the car.

A couple of blaring sirens and the hum of the large generator that's running its weekly test, fill that space with a lot of noise.

She walks purposefully, her thoughts drift from one topic to the next. She could dwell on her decision to leave the force and what it'll mean for employment, but she'd rather think about it tomorrow.

_She'll have nothing else to do anyway._

Thoughts of Bobby are easier. Tonight was very nice. They never run out of things to talk about. His mind is a mysterious place which makes for some very interesting discussions.

And he makes her laugh.

She wishes they could go out together more often. Once a week might seem a little too forward. Once a month might be more reasonable.

She's about to exit the alley way when someone grabs her from behind.

Reflexively she reaches for her gun, but it's no longer there.

The perp is male, medium build, strong, maybe six foot. He's got on worn cargo pants, a leather jacket, a dark nylon mask and leather gloves.

She throws her weight into an elbow jab, nailing the perpetrator in the gut, but it doesn't slow him down.

Her taser gun is in her bag, if she can get to it. She tries to step out of his grasp when he puts a cloth over her mouth.

She detects nothing in the cloth, but she slows her breathing just in case.

Her attempts to get ahold of his arm or something so that she could take him down fail. Meanwhile he's moved her further into the alley, and out of sight of anyone who might be headed down the cross street.

She starts to feel lightheaded. _Dammit, she misjudged the cloth. _

She sinks in his arms, and he drags her to the back of the van that's just pulled into the alley way. Another man helps him get her inside and they take off.

**x**

Hours later, Alex awakens to a searing pain in her left temple. The rest of her isn't much better off.

_What in the hell happened? Had someone thrown her down a flight of stairs?_

It's painful just to lift her head, but she does.

She's blindfolded with some kind of cloth. Her hands are tied tightly behind her back with thin strands of rope. Feels like some sort of twine. There's very little room for her to move her hands without it slicing into her skin. Her ankles are bound in the same way.

There's tape over her mouth. Thick tape._ Probably duct tape._

She's on the floor. It's a thin, bare carpet with no padding. It smells musty and a little like stale food. Might be a basement but there's a draft coming from somewhere.

Her jacket and shoes are missing. Perp probably has her phone, keys, wallet and bag.

She hears no sounds around her and assumes she's alone. She listens intently for a minute, wondering if there are any outside sounds like traffic to clue her in on where the perp has taken her, but she hears nothing.

It's probably too much to hope that whomever abducted her, left her to fend for herself and wouldn't be returning.

_Let them try to come near me_, she muses to herself. _The creep will need a surgical implant just to pee again._

There is one problem…

Who will know she's missing?

This isn't like her ordeal with Jo Gage a few years back, when there were people expecting her at work the next morning.

_What are the chances Bobby gets a text from the perp this time?_

No one knows she quit except for the department and Bobby. She never made it to Inwood. She planned to call her parents on the way, but that didn't happen.

Maybe her sister will call and try to make plans. The call will go to voice mail and Liz will just assume she's too busy at work.

Her dad will call as soon as word gets around that she quit. He'll have to hear from one of his cohorts and he'll be plenty steamed that the news didn't come directly from her.

Then there's Bobby.

They just saw each other tonight. No further plans have been made. He might call if something motivates him to do so, but he's got to look for work and that'll be his first priority. He'll be going crazy with nothing to do and he's just come off of a suspension.

So it looks like she's on her own.

_Who could have done this? Why? Could it be someone she knows personally? Someone she dated a while back? Or just some random guy who picked her out of a crowd and decided to make her his next victim? _

Sure, she's been a little distracted lately...

_Ross….Hassan…The captain's exam…Bobby_…

_Has someone been following her? Watching her? Planning this?_

She starts mulling over her past few cases while she picks at the twine around her wrists. Laying on her side on a thin carpet with no padding is causing pain and she's already sore.

She's tired and she finds herself starting to zone out.

_No. No…can't. Falling asleep is a bad idea._

Eventually, whomever did this is going to come for her.

She counts, pours over old cases—anything she could do to keep her mind alert. It works for a while.

_Then she hears a door opening._

_** x**_

* * *

_**~ PRESENT ~**_

Bobby buries his face in his hands. The shock is still settling in.

"What can you remember about the last time you saw her?" Elliot prompts.

"Eames and I had dinner and drinks the night we both left Major Case. She came by my apartment—" He stops speaking abruptly and lifts his head to meet their gaze.

The pieces fall into place. The knot in his stomach starts to feel more like a twisting knife.

_Some freak has Eames and the NYPD is looking at him... _

He stands up quickly and the chair he was sitting in falls over.

"_You think I did this_?" he charges bitterly, slamming his hands down on the table. "Y-you think I'd hurt my partner? Why? Because she fired me? You think I'd rape her? Oh my God!"

He tries to catch his breath and get a handle on this, but everything feels out of control…

_Someone's got Eames. Someone's raped her. The room's spinning. He's going to throw up…_

Elliot and Olivia get up out of their seats and approach, intending to settle him down.

Bobby straightens his posture and confronts them gruffly. "You have no real suspects so you have to come after me, _is that it?" _he presses angrily.

Elliot reaches out and takes Bobby's arm, trying to settle him. "Goren, wait…"

He jerks out his grasp. "NO! You two need to be out there doing your job—"

"Stop it right there!" Olivia raises her voice, cutting him off. She takes a couple breaths before she continues.

She and Elliot knew this was going to be a difficult interview. But she doesn't want to make this any harder than it already is.

"Listen to us…" she begins calmly. "We don't think you're guilty. But you have to know that others…"

"One PP…" he groans.

She nods and frowns. "Alex comes from a family of cops… They're going to want a full investigation."

"There is no way… Absolutely _NONE!"_ he huffs. "You know what? Fine! If you want to search my apartment, dump my phone, talk to my neighbors, go through my trash, I don't care! I have nothing to hide! But you're wasting time that _should_ be spent looking for Eames!"

"We're on your side, Goren," Elliot adds. "And we want your help finding her."

"I'm in."

"But… We're limited in what we can show you—"

"Until they rule me out as a suspect," Bobby finishes his sentence.

He offers a sympathetic smile. "You know the drill."

Bobby takes a couple breaths. "Like I said… Last time I saw her, we had drinks and dinner. They brought me on at the bureau and two days later, I was on a plane for Quantico. From there, I went to Chicago and then Houston. I got back to New York yesterday afternoon. I called her to ask if she wanted to have dinner again. Call went to voice mail. I didn't know she was missing."

"Help us fill in the gaps. We'll need your whereabouts since you left Major Case, where you and Eames had dinner, anything about the events leading up to when you both left," Elliot says.

He nods. "You've got it. And then I want to see everything you have on this case. Show me _everything_."

**TBC…**

* * *

**A/N: Reviews are always welcome! :)  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N… Thanks for the follows and reviews! Updates will be faster, I promise. Reminder that "PAST" is the part of the story just after Loyalty II, and follows the events since Alex is abducted. "PRESENT" is still about two weeks ahead and mostly deals with SVU and the investigation. It'll all catch up in a couple chapters. **

**I've decided to give this story chapter titles. I'm also working on adding an image to the headers. All of my fics have banners in my Word documents. So far, I'm not thrilled with those images in 's format. **

_**x x x**_

_**~PAST~**_

_**Somewhere in Manhattan…**_

She sits up when she hears someone walking in. A moment later, the door closes.

At some point during the abduction they put a blindfold on her. She doesn't know where the person is or what they're planning, so she stops fidgeting with the rope around her wrists and waits.

She assumes it's one of the two men who grabbed her. They don't make a sound.

The door is located somewhere on the other side of the room. When it opens, there are no background noises. She still suspects that she's in the basement of some building.

There's duct tape over her mouth so she can't ask what they want.

_She'd like to tell them how many ways they can go screw themselves for bringing her here. _

He takes a couple steps forward, then stops. A minute or two passes with no further movements or sounds.

_Is he waiting for something? Is he watching her? Is he planning to kill her? Does he have a gun? What the hell is going on?_

More time passes in silence.

_What the hell is he waiting for…? Does he want her to think he left…? Who is this creep…?_

She hears footsteps and suddenly, he's right beside her.

He squats down on the floor to her left, touches her cheek with his fingers and begins picking at the edge of the tape that's over her mouth. He still hasn't said a word.

She remains still, silently counts to three, then shoves him hard with her shoulder. He loses his balance and she begins scooting away from him as quickly as she can.

Seeing her intended path, he blocks her from the other side. When he tries to remove the tape again, she swings her legs and feet around preparing to kick and defend herself.

"Stop… I'm just trying to take the tape off so I can give you some water," he explains calmly.

He lightly touches a water bottle to her arm and to her cheek to prove his point, then sets the bottle down and continues trying to take the tape off of her mouth.

She remains skeptical and tries to pull away again, but he has a corner of the tape loose and yanks it, removing all but the last fourth of it.

_Sonofabitch, _she groans. She feels the burn on her cheeks when the air hits it.

_If I had one hand free, this creep would have a broken nose._

He doesn't bother with the piece that remains stuck to the side of her face. She hears the seal of the bottle cap break as he twists it off. He sets the lip of the bottle against her mouth and pours it toward her lips. "Here… Drink."

She's not prepared, so some of the fluid touches her lips and the rest slips down the sides of her cheeks. A little of it enters her mouth when she parts her lips for a breath.

_Well, it tastes like water. _

He brings the bottle down to give her a chance to swallow, then he lifts the bottle again and she sips more of it down.

It tastes good and she's very thirsty. She lifts her head for air and when she's ready again, he tilts the bottle toward her lips and lets her drink some more. She drinks a good portion of it down.

The next time he lowers the bottle, she speaks. "Who the hell are you?"

He doesn't answer her.

He smells faintly of Polo aftershave and French fries.

_Not like that narrows it down._

"Why did you bring me here?"

"It wasn't me," he says. He closes the bottle and sets it beside him.

She doesn't buy it. "Who then?"

"I can't say."

"You're holding me here without my consent. If you don't want to face some hefty charges and prison time, I suggest you take these restraints off me and let me go!"

"Hey, listen—" When he places a hand on her shoulder, she shoves him again and uses her feet and legs to scoot toward the door. He follows her.

She senses him approaching and swings her feet around, nailing him in the shins.

_Too bad she doesn't have her boots on. Rat bastard wouldn't know what hit him…_

He lets out a groan and she resumes her escape.

It's a little difficult with her arms and legs bound, but she's making progress. He blocks her path once more, positioning himself between her and the door. When she tries to move again, he stops her with a hand on each shoulder.

"Stop moving!"

"Go to hell!" she fusses back. She tries to wiggle away and he wrestles her to the floor. He lays over her, pinning her down with his weight.

Her hands and arms are caught underneath her and it hurts. As she squirms and tries to wiggle free of him, the last bit of duct tape comes off and sticks to her hair. She lets out a scream in the hope someone hears her. He immediately covers her mouth with his hand.

She guesses he's about 6 foot tall, 220 pounds. Thin, but solid.

He lowers his mouth to her ear and speaks in a whisper… "Listen to me! I'm not here to hurt you! He sent me here to check on you and take care of any needs."

_What the hell is this…? Good perp, bad perp?_

"_Who_ sent you?" she mumbles through his hand.

"Promise me you won't scream and I'll remove my hand and tell you what I know," he offers, still speaking in a hushed tone.

She nods and he removes it.

"He calls himself Malik. He's got a wire on me. There are several cameras in this room and speakers. If we whisper, he won't hear us."

"What does he want?"

"I don't know. I'm his prisoner just like you. My daughter's been missing for 4 months now and I know he had something to do with it. If I want to see her again, I have to do what he says. I tried offering money and that didn't work."

"Did you go to the police?"

"It's about as easy for _me_ to go to the police right now as it is for _you._ Like I said, there's a wire on me. If I try to escape, if I remove the wire, if I fight back or do anything he doesn't approve of, he might kill her."

"What's he want with me?"

"I don't know."

"So, what's your name?"

He hesitates a moment before answering. "You can call me Cole."

"I'm Alex."

"It's nice to meet you, Alex. I wish it was under better circumstances."

"Thanks," she replies uneasily. While the guy doesn't seem threatening for the moment, this is still an uncomfortable situation.

_Especially with him laying over her. _

"Umm… Could you get off of me?"

He lifts his torso and settles on the floor beside her. Then he reaches over and carefully removes the piece of duct tape that's stuck to her hair.

"Thanks. What can you tell me about Malik?"

"What do you want to know?"

"Physical description…weight, height, eye color, piercings, tattoos, markings, habits… Does he smoke? Wear glasses? Walk with a limp? Do you recognize him from somewhere? Anything about his activities?"

"That's a lot of questions," he chuckles. "I've never seen his face, he always wears a nylon mask. Dark eyes, no glasses. He speaks with an accent. On the back of his left hand, there's a large scar at the base of his pinky down to his wrist. I saw it briefly, but he usually wears gloves. He's about my height, kind of thin and I'm not good with weight."

"What kind of accent do you hear?"

"I'm not good at accents either."

"Try," she presses. "Give me a region…_something…"_

"Honestly, I don't know. If I guess, I might be completely off."

"What about his complexion?"

"Tan… Dark tan."

_Malik..., _she ponders._ Hmm…might be Arabic, Islamic…?_

"Is Malik his last name?" Alex asks.

"I have no idea."

"Anything else about him?"

"No, not really."

"I'm sorry about your daughter…" Alex offers supportively. "What's her name? How old is she?"

"Amanda. She's 4 and a half."

She hears a smile in his tone when he mentions her.

"Has he said anything to you about her? Will he let you see her?"

"No. Umm… Did you need to use a bathroom?" he asks, quickly changing the subject.

"Definitely. What time is it? How long have I been here?"

"6:15. I'd say most of the night. You hungry?" he asks, starting to get up.

"Not at the moment."

"You should eat. I'll bring you something in a few hours. There's a bathroom in here. As you face the wall in the back of the room, follow it over to your left and it's in the corner…"

One of his hands suddenly slips underneath her legs and another wraps around her back.

"Wh-what are you doing?" she asks startled.

"I thought it would be easier if I just carried you there." Before she can object, he lifts her up into his arms. "Besides, you don't weigh anything," he adds grinning.

It's about twenty paces across the room and they're inside the bathroom. He sets her down so she's standing beside the toilet.

When he reaches down and starts to unfasten her pants for her, she flinches.

"I'm sorry... I—"

"I can do this myself!" she snaps. "Get this damned cord off my wrists!" She turns her wrists toward him.

Cole sighs. "He's got a camera in here too."

"Fine." She turns back to face him.

_God, this is humiliating._

She's not sure if there's toilet paper and she's not about to ask this guy for help.

She finishes and he helps her with her pants.

"Any idea how long he plans to keep me here?"

"Nope."

"How long have you been his victim?"

"About a month ago, I came home to find pictures of my daughter all over my apartment. I can't even talk about it."

"I'm sorry, Cole."

He picks her up and they exit the bathroom.

"There's a bed in the corner. It's not much, but it'll be more comfortable than the floor."

"That's fine."

He crosses the room and sets her down on the mattress, then remains beside her.

She sits up, leaving her feet on the floor. "Can you take my blindfold off?"

Another sigh. "Nope, sor—"

He's interrupted by a beeping sound. It sounds like a pager.

"What's that about?" she asks.

"That means I've gotta go." He wanders to the other side of the room to get her water bottle and returns. "Do you want the rest of your water?"

"How am I supposed to drink the water or use the bathroom, when he won't let me use my hands?"

"That's why I'm here." He perches on the edge of the bed facing her. "I'll have to get you a pager."

"Can you loosen the cord on my wrists? Tie them in the front? _Something?_"

Cole leans in close to her. His hands reach around to her back and he's touching her hands, wrists and the cord. She assumes he's examining them.

"You've got some abrasions here…," he says after a minute. His thumb and fingers lightly stroke her wrists where the tight twine caused some soreness. He casually picks the knot she was working on, loosening it a bit. "…I'll have to come back with something to treat this."

"Thanks," she whispers.

She's a little more comfortable. She hopes she'll be able to get out of them quicker.

"He'll want me to put the tape back on you. I know it's tempting to scream for help, but unfortunately, no one will know about it except him."

"So where are we?"

"About all I can tell you is East River Park. I'll be back. Bye, Alex."

"Bye, Cole."

She hears the door close and she's alone again.

She stretches out on the bed and rolls over onto her side, pulling her feet up. It's an improvement from the floor. She's a little cold though.

If this…Malik character won't take a bribe, then what's this about? Intimidation? Blackmail?

As long as there's some reason this perp wants to keep her alive, she's got a chance of escaping.

Meanwhile, Cole's helping her but encouraging her not to fight back.

He obviously knows more than he's ready to admit.

He's thinking of his daughter and not taking risks. It's understandable.

She'll find a way to press him for information and probably talk him through a plan to help them escape and get his daughter back.

She resumes picking at the knots in the rope by her wrists. Cole made it a tad more comfortable, but not any looser. She continues until she starts feeling drowsy and drifts into a light sleep.

_**x x x**_

_**~PRESENT~**_

He remembers the last time he felt _this_ anxious…

_I've been with your partner all night. _

_We're having a great time._

—_Sebastian._

The thought of someone like Sebastian abducting his partner with the intent of torturing and killing her is something he still hasn't gotten over.

Fortunately it wasn't Sebastian, and Eames made it out of there alive. Jo Gage wasn't the same person he once knew and respected and that was a tough pill to swallow.

He agrees to go with Benson and Stabler to their precinct to answer some questions and meet with Captain Cragen. Moments later, they all enter Special Victims Unit.

Suspicious glances are passed in his direction from a few of the officers as he's arriving.

Maybe it's because they all knew him as Eames's old partner. Maybe it's because he was fired from Major Case.

He doesn't bother to address any of them, just keeps his head lowered.

When he enters the bullpen he's approached by Detectives John Munch and Fin Tutuola. They offer a friendly smile along with their condolences over Captain Ross's death and their concerns for Eames.

Maybe his anger is a little misdirected. The four detectives are doing their best to be supportive and he knows what it's like to be in their shoes.

And he genuinely likes them. They're tough cops and this isn't an easy unit to work in.

The group remains in the bullpen making small talk while they wait for Captain Cragen to finish a phone call and join them.

Bobby's eyes are suddenly drawn toward the door when he sees a familiar face enter. The visitor peers around the precinct, makes eye contact with Bobby and then makes his way over.

"_Detective Nichols…?"_ Bobby greets as he approaches quizzically. The four SVU detectives follow curiously.

"Hey, Goren. Good to see you," Zach greets Bobby with a handshake.

"Yeah, you too."

"I understand you joined the dark side…" he teases. "What's it like working for the feds?"

Bobby grins. "Good. It's a comfortable outfit so far."

"SVU interviewed Stevens and Captain Callas earlier, but I wasn't there at the time. Stevens filled me in about Eames. I thought I'd come by and offer any help I could. What brings you here?"

"Umm… _They_ wanted to ask me some questions," he explains.

He hears the inflection in Goren's tone and offers a sympathetic smile. "Listen… Do you think Hassan might be behind this?" he asks.

"_Hassan who?_" Elliot inquires curiously.

Zach sees Cragen exit his office and approach the group. He makes eye contact and greets him respectfully. "Hello, Captain."

"What can we do for you, Detective Nichols?"

"Who is working the case involving Alex Eames?"

"Me and Liv," Elliot answers.

"I have a couple thoughts about the case…" His gaze drifts among the group, including a few curious officers who had just walked up to find out what's going on. "Sorry, but some of this has to do with another case. Need-to-know only. Is there some place the five of us can speak privately?" He gestures quickly between himself, Goren, Cragen, Stabler and Benson.

"Let's take this to my office," Cragen answers. He closes the door once they're all inside. "So what's this about?"

"Umm… To answer your question, Elliot…" he begins. "Hassan was set to take over as the ruler of Puntland after his father was killed. He was preparing to smuggle stinger missiles into Puntland. Feds were already involved. Captain Ross was working undercover when he was killed. We leaned on Hassan's sister, Kadra and she gave us everything—including the plans to kill Ross and a few others. The FBI put GPS tracking devices in a shipment of stinger missiles. The plan is to let them get stolen so the FBI can track them to the locations of several terrorist camps. Since Hassan is part of the operation, the plan only works if he goes free…"

"But…_he killed your captain?_" Olivia groans disapprovingly.

Bobby nods and frowns. "If we arrest Hassan, we lose what Ross worked for _and_ what he died for. Ross wouldn't have wanted that."

"Hassan's days are numbered. He's made a lot of enemies," Nichols adds. "Anyway, I think he may be connected to Eames's disappearance. The timing is right."

"You're both saying Hassan can't be touched, even if he's involved with the abduction and rape of Alex Eames," Olivia remarks. "Would we be able to question him?"

"I'm working on that," Zach replies.

"Wait…" Bobby interrupts, shaking his head.

"He's capable of anything," Zach argues.

"He got what he came for. He should have left the country by now."

"We don't know that, Goren. We already know he kills whomever gets in his way. What's to stop him from seeking revenge?"

"He's after the power and the money."

"Let's find out where's he been these past two weeks since Eames went missing," Zach suggests.

"I'm willing to bet he'll lie low for a while. Besides, this is SVU's case. They have video evidence of Eames's attack and they say it's linked to other rapes. We should start with that," Bobby replies.

"I still say we don't rule out Hassan."

"We won't rule out anyone," Elliot agrees.

"I've got to be going now, but I'll be in touch with all of you."

"See you, Zach."

He waves to the group as he leaves. "Bye, everyone."

Cragen turns to Bobby. "Agent Goren, can I speak with you alone for a minute?"

"Sure, Captain."

"You two can continue your interview when I'm done. Room 1 is open," he tells Benson and Stabler.

The detectives leave and Cragen shuts the door behind them.

"First of all… I'm very sorry about Captain Ross. Danny was one of the best."

"Yeah, he was."

"And like everyone here, I'm concerned about Alex Eames. She's still one of our own. The investigation to rule you out as a suspect was not my call. I'm following the orders I was given. Your full cooperation _is_ expected."

"Yes sir."

"Next, I've made a request with the bureau that you be temporarily assigned to SVU to assist us in this case. I'm still waiting for confirmation and I'll let you know when I receive it. I did this because I know you'll be a big help to us. _However… _ I also know that you've had no problem circumventing authority in the past, _especially_ when a case is personal to you, as this one obviously is. I can assure you that is _not_ going to happen here," he adds sternly. "The pressure is on for all of us. Any problems, and you can head straight back to Federal Plaza. Do we have an understanding?"

"Yes sir."

"Good." He opens the door and holds it for Bobby.

"Thanks, Captain," he adds as he walks out.

_**x x x**_

A minute later, Bobby joins Elliot and Olivia in the interrogation room.

Cragen wanders into the observation room, leans against the window and watches.

Bobby's posture slumps a bit. He's not had the chance to process the fact that Eames is missing, much less that she could be raped or that her life is in danger.

He feels empty inside. At the moment, it's better than the anger that he tries to suppress for the sake of staying in the loop.

He agreed to this so he complies. But he'd rather be canvassing the roads near the restaurant where they ate, and where she parked.

Maybe he'd go to her apartment next. Something there might to clue him in to her disappearance and help him find her.

Benson shows him pictures of the last few victims. He doesn't recognize any of the women. Nothing about them or the crime scenes strike him as familiar.

They move on to the questioning next. He recounts the last time he saw Eames, their dinner together, their conversations.

The days since he went to Quantico are pretty much all accounted for. The two days prior to him leaving are filled with running errands and packing. It's not much of an alibi of course.

A half-hour is spent on the people in their lives and anyone who might have had a problem with her. It doesn't seem to steer them toward any leads.

Finally, it's on to his and Alex's relationship.

"What was your relationship with your partner like just before you left?" Elliot asks.

"Good. No problems. A lot happened over the past few weeks, obviously. She's very loyal as a partner. We got along well."

"But she fired you…?" 

"Yes," he shifts uncomfortably in his seat. "She felt it would be kinder and gentler than leaving it for Captain Maas or someone else."

"And before then? What's the partnership been like in the past?"

"Oh, we've hit some bumps in the road just like other partners. I'd say it's been good for a long time."

"You said you two had dinner the night you both left Major Case… Was this a routine thing? Do you eat together often?"

"No, not really. We'd grab a bite if we're working and it gets late. Just like the two of you, I'm sure," he replies, gesturing across the table.

Elliot hesitates before his next question. "Is there…_or has there ever been_ a romantic relationship between the two of you?"

His brow furrows. "_What?_"

"Were you two romantically involved?"

He shakes his head. "No. We're professional."

"Have you, or has she expressed any romantic feelings recently, even if it wasn't reciprocated?"

"No," he answers.

"Have you two ever been sexually involved, or has there been any occurrences of sexual contact in the relationship?"

"_Like I said…_ We're professional." He's answering them calmly, but he feels the tension in him rising.

"Are there incidents of sexual harassment that went unreported?"

"_Are you serious?"_

"I have ask these questions."

"NO, I've never sexually harassed her! I'd never do such a thing!"

_They could be out trying to find Eames right now. Instead, they're burning daylight hours on this crap. _

"You need to hear about _my_ sex life next?" He charges. He'll have to go back a couple years, maybe cite a fling or two that he'd rather leave in the past.

"As a matter of fact… Yes," Elliot answers, eyeing the tablet and trying not to be put off by Goren's escalating temper.

Elliot knows his captain is watching. While he can't exactly blame Goren, this isn't his fault either.

"There's been no one for a while," Bobby sighs. "I've been busy."

"How many dates have you and Eames been on?"

He settles back in his chair with his arms folded, glaring.

"Do you want me to repeat the question?"

"What about the two of you?" he counters. The corner of his lips lift into an amused smile and he can't resist chuckling. "I mean… God knows how many rumors have flown around the NYPD about _Benson and Stabler._"

"Goren—"

"How many times has your marriage to Kathy suffered because of Benson, huh?"

It's a cheap shot and he knows it. But he's reaching his limit.

"_Enough!"_ Olivia snaps irritably in defense of her partner.

"We've been in here for over an hour and this isn't getting us anywhere! We should be out looking for Eames!"

Elliot nudges Olivia, wanting to step outside the room so he can speak to her alone.

"We'll be right back," he tells Bobby, grabbing his tablet up from the table. The two get up from their chairs and walk into the observation room.

As the door closes, Cragen steps toward them. "Do you need me to talk to him again?" he offers.

Elliot shakes his head and turns toward his partner. "Liv, could you give me a few minutes alone to talk to him? I want to smooth some of this over."

"Sure," she agrees. "I'm getting hungry and we skipped lunch. Might just grab some Pad Thai. Want anything?"

Elliot takes out his wallet and hands her a few bills. "The same. And get something for Goren."

"Do you think he'll eat?"

"If not, Munch or Fin will." He turns to Cragen. "How about you?"

"I've got a late lunch with Tucker at Internal Affairs, but I'll probably lose my appetite before I get there," he says wryly. "I'll be leaving in a few. Call me if this gets out of hand. We'll talk later."

"Sure, Captain."

Cragen leaves the observation room a second later.

"Thanks, Liv," Elliot adds, as he wanders toward the interrogation room door.

"Good luck," she smiles back.

Goren glances up from the table as Elliot enters alone. He sits back down in his chair.

"Where's Benson?"

"She went to get some lunch. I asked her to pick up something for both of us. I hope you like Pad Thai, it's Liv's favorite," he grins.

"Thanks." He peers back at him, feeling a little guilty. "Sorry for the crack I made about Kathy and Olivia… That was out of line."

"If I were in your shoes and Liv was missing, do you _honestly_ think I would be any better at these questions?"

"Yeah, but—"

Elliot waves his hands to interject. "I know where you're coming from. Liv and I were forced to take a psychological exam once. They were trying to decide whether to split us up."

"Why?"

He smirks. "Well… There could be a few reasons. One comes to mind. There was this pedophile case we had a few years back. One of the worst we've ever dealt with. Perp kills a family, abducts the two youngest—a little boy and girl. We tracked him to the bus terminal. He's got the children with him. Liv corners him. She tries to get a shot, but there's too many people around. The perp pulls a knife, cuts Liv's throat and disappears somewhere in the terminal with the kids. I saw him cut her and then take off. I panicked. I thought she was going to die, so I went to her side instead of following them. Liv's okay with a few stitches. The perp cuts the little boy's throat a minute later and leaves him to die on the train platform. He escapes with the little girl. I still blame myself for that boy's death," he says, shaking his head. "Later in the case, we track the perp to a warehouse. He's got a gun to my head, Liv's got him in range. The perp uses me as a shield. I trusted Liv to take the shot, but she wouldn't. A sniper shoots the perp and we saved the little girl. Bottom line, Liv and I both chose each other over the job… You know how _that_ looks on paper."

Bobby nods and frowns. "Sounds like a tough case."

"You and I are no different. The brass love to gripe about anger issues."

"I'd love to find a cop who _doesn't_ have anger issues."

"Exactly. I work in sex crimes because I like to think I'm getting rapists and child molesters off the street. But also because I know my partner will not stop doing this job until it kills her. I'll have her back through any shit-storm and she'll do the same for me. I'm sure it was no different for you and Alex. I think the world of Eames, you know I do. I want this creep caught, Eames and the others brought back safe and justice for all of the victims. You have to know that I'm on your side through this case no matter what the guys downtown say. So is Liv, and so is this unit. But we'll have to put up with some irritations along the way…" He holds up his note pad then tosses it back down. It slides across the table a little further from where they sit. "And it only gets uglier when the guys downtown are involved."

He eyes the note pad and nods. "Yeah, I get it."

"Liv keeps me from losing my job."

"Alex did the same for me. As much as she could anyway," he frowns.

"Sounds like a good partner."

"She's the best." Bobby turns his focus to the pictures Olivia set out. He pulls them closer to examine them again. "You've got three confirmed bodies… How many are still missing and how many DVDs have come in?"

"Three are missing, including Alex. Two girls disappeared the same night in approximately the same area. We suspect it's our perp, but only one DVD has come in and that's Alex."

He studies the pictures of the deceased victims, which also includes notes of where the bodies were found, the last place they were seen alive, and some general information.

Elliot retrieves a photo set of the missing girls with some statistics and hands those to Bobby. Alex's picture is the last. It's the same picture as her last NYPD photo ID.

Bobby stares at it and some grief wells up in him. He sets all the pictures back down on the table and continues eyeing different stats about the dead victims.

"What are you thinking, Goren?"

"There are no real similarities here. The women didn't know each other. One's a school teacher. One works for the county. One runs a pet-sitting service. Your missing women include a waitress, a pharmacy clerk, and a cop. No evidence of them being robbed. No one tried to use their ATM cards. The DVD is what stands out. He sends you guys the DVDs because he wants SVU to know what he's doing."

"So how does he end up choosing a Major Case detective as his latest victim? Was she part of the plan? Did he knowingly grab a cop? Or was it random? That's what I can't figure out."

Bobby gazes dejectedly at Alex's picture without replying.

Elliot sighs. "He's definitely got the NYPD's attention."

_**x x x**_

_**TBC… **_

_**Next, Chapter 3 - Flight**_


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N… Thanks for the reviews and follows! I am always grateful to see those! This isn't a long chapter but the next one is already getting really close. **

**To Sell, JL and others wondering… It's hard to say much without giving things away. I wish I could give you all the chapters at once. There is suspense and angst, yes, but there's still so much that has to unfold. If you made it through Turbulence and Storm Front, I think you'll survive this one. **

**Reminder that Alex's part is still in the past (after she's abducted) and Bobby and SVU are almost two weeks ahead. We'll catch up to the present in the next couple of chapters. **

**This chapter begins with a flashback to Alex and Bobby's dinner just before the abduction (i.e., chapter 1).**

**_x x x_**

**_~PAST~_**

**_Lower Manhattan…_**

"_Would you two care for some dessert?" the waiter asks, glancing between the couple. _

_The petite blonde woman's eyes drift over the menu, while the tall man sitting beside her sets his down and watches her for a reply. _

"_How about the key lime, Bobby?" she suggests. _

_The man named 'Bobby' is either her date or her husband. He doesn't wear a wedding ring, but then again, there are married men who don't._

"_Yeah, I saw that," Bobby answers her. "I was looking at the chocolate cake."_

_Her eyes drift over the menu. Seeing no sign of chocolate cake, she lifts her head. "Where?"_

"_Back page."_

_She flips it over and her eyes fall to the image. "Oh, that does look good."_

"_It's moist, rich, very decadent," the waiter chimes in. "One of our most popular."_

_She sighs, preparing to hand the menu back to the waiter. "Sounds like extra calories."_

"_Like you would have to worry," Bobby tells her affectionately._

_Her cheeks flush and she tries to suppress a grin. The complement is well received._

"_I once heard a customer say a slice of that was better than sex," the waiter remarks to her with a grin. "So how about one slice of cake and two forks? You and your husband can share."_

"_Oh… H-he's not—" The blonde woman's face turns a deeper shade of red as she tries to correct the waiter._

"_We're coworkers," Bobby interjects nervously; his face is almost as red as hers is. "Or we—"_

"_We're friends," she explains._

_The waiter shrugs. Not that it matters to him personally. _

"_Do you want to share a piece of cake, Eames?" _

"_Uh….sure, why not."_

"_Coming right up," he tells them. He collects their menus and leaves the table._

"_I think I'm going to head to Inwood tonight," she tells Bobby. "It's better if I tell my dad the news of me leaving before he hears it from someone else."_

_Bobby nods and frowns. "I still wish you didn't have to go through this."_

_She shakes her head. "I stand behind my choice."_

"_Thanks," he smiles appreciatively. "Are you going to spend some time with your dad while you're there?"_

"_I'm not sure. It's been already been a long day."_

_A minute later, the waiter returns to the table and sets a slice of cake in front of them with two forks. "Here you go. Enjoy."_

_Their eyes drift down to the plate. Each one takes a fork and starts in on the cake. _

_After the first bite, they moan almost in unison._

"_The waiter was right… I don't even smoke and I may need a cigarette after this," Alex teases, prompting a smirk from Bobby._

_They quietly enjoy their dessert for a couple minutes. She offers the last bite to him, but he splits it in half for both of them._

_That sinking feeling in her stomach is starting to return. They've had drinks, they've finished their meal and now they've had dessert. There's nothing left to stall this goodbye. _

_While she knows they'll bump into each other periodically, the finality of this moment is hitting her hard._

_Because it won't be the same after today. _

"_Hey Bobby…?"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_You know if you ever need anything…"_

"_You too, Eames."_

**_x x x_**

She wakes from her dream, still thinking of Bobby.

_What would he say if he knew what happened after she left the restaurant last night? _

She still remembers seeing this disheveled, visibly worn-out partner of hers enter the hospital room after the Jo Gage incident.

"_You look like hell,"_ she teases him.

_He takes a seat beside her bed. _

_When she wakes up hours later, he's still there._

She knows she can't wait around for Cole to come up with an escape plan. She'll send someone for him and his daughter.

Alex sits up on the mattress and resumes trying to get the knots in the cord untied. She gets one, but she's not free yet. Perp tied a ridiculous number of knots. _Rat bastard. _

She spends the next thirty minutes trying to get her hands free and finally, there's success.

The cord falls from her wrists and brushes the edge of the mattress as it drops to the floor. It's so quiet in there she hears it. It's a small, but satisfying '_screw you'_ to her abductors.

She remembers what Cole said about the cameras, so she listens for any hallway sounds or signs that someone is coming. There are none, so she assumes she's still safe.

Alex tugs the blindfold off and looks at her surroundings for the first time.

It's just as she expected. A large, open room on a lower-level floor or basement.

The bed is the only piece of furniture in that room and it's a twin bed. Metal frame with a mattress on top. The mattress has seen better days. There are metal bed posts at both ends.

There's thin gray carpeting on the floor and cream-colored paint on the walls. There are eight florescent light fixtures on the ceiling, three of them aren't working.

Her best guess is that this was a laundry room at some point. There are discolored spots in the carpet where there may have been machines or folding tables, and a couple of patched holes in the wall where some dryer hoses were connected.

On the opposite wall, she spots two rectangular-shaped openings close to the ceiling that look like windows. They're about one foot high by two feet wide. A thin panel covers them, but still allows light through.

After removing the cord from her ankles, she shoves it into her pocket in case she needs it later.

The door is obviously locked. It's sturdy and there doesn't appear to be a way to break out. There's nothing around she can use as a tool.

She has two options.

She could move the bed over to the back wall and climb up on it to get to the windows. The ceiling is about ten feet high and the bottom ledge of the window is probably eight feet high. Just remove the cover and she's out.

The other option is taking the cord and surprising the perp when he shows up.

Truthfully, she's tired of waiting. She wishes she had a way to barricade the door. She sees nothing except the bed frame and she'll need that to get up to the window.

Alex grabs one end of the bed and drags it across the floor. A couple of snags in the rug slow her down at times.

Her energy is lagging. It's definitely from a lack of food, but it's also from lying in one spot for so long.

She turns the bed over on its side, pushes it against the wall and then climbs up onto the metal frame.

It gives her a couple feet of height, but she still has to extend her arms to reach the window covering.

The material is some sort of industrial-strength plastic about a quarter-inch thick that someone attached to the wallboard with heavy-duty staples.

_Goren would know what the hell this thing is_, she thinks to herself. The passing thought of her partner makes her smile.

She tries to pry it off with her hands, but after picking at the knots in the cord for so long, her fingers are tender and sore, and her patience is waning.

She needs a screwdriver or maybe the back end of a hammer.

The longer she works at it, the more frustrated she becomes. Not to mention, she has to balance on a three-inch wide metal bed frame with no shoes on.

She mumbles the word _sonofabitch_ so many times that it loses its punch.

Fortunately, persistence pays off. She gets a large enough gap between the material and the wallboard to slip her fingers underneath a corner. She pries the corner upward and the staple comes out.

Taking ahold of the corner, she rips most of the cover from the wall. She's disappointed to discover that the window is just an open space between rooms. Air vent covers were taken off and this plastic was put in its place. She hoists herself up a little higher so she can see into the adjacent room. It's about the same size as the one she's in. Same dingy carpet and walls.

White florescent light panels illuminate the space. Well, _she thought_ she saw daylight…

_Maybe it was wishful thinking._

She doesn't see any other windows in the adjacent room, but there's a door in the far right corner.

A sliver of sunlight peeks under the door… _Hopefully._

There's a bed in the adjacent room and it's close enough for her to reach.

She glances around the room a little more.

A towel lies in a heap on the floor next to the bed. It might have something inside of it, she can't decide from this angle. Beside the towel is a brown paper grocery bag with the top folded over.

She takes another look at the plastic cover in front of her. The last corner remains stuck to the wall, but she's got room to get through. Then it's about a six foot drop to the mattress.

When the top of her shoulders are passed the ledge, she hears a door opening behind her…

_Fuck._

_What are her chances that it's Cole coming to help her escape?_

_Right… And he brought the local cops and CSU, picked up lunch from her favorite deli and even stopped for coffee._

She's still climbing through when the person grabs her by the ankles and tries to pull her back.

She hopes that Cole would identify himself.

If he _planned_ to hurt her, he could have done so already.

_So this has to be the one Cole warned her about._

She can't see into the room behind her, so she's kicking blindly. She nails him in the chest once or twice and he releases her. She continues her plan to escape, until he grabs ahold of her right leg. He twists her leg until she feels a pop in her knee.

_Damn you, sonofabitch! _Alex groans. The pain is fierce for a couple seconds, then subsides. He tries once more to pull her back into the room, but she fights her way out of his grasp by swinging her feet. This time she kicks him in the jaw.

He releases her and stumbles backward, muttering a lot of colorful words.

There isn't time to contemplate a landing. She clings to the wall ledge, brings her hips, legs and feet through and drops to the mattress in the adjacent room. The mattress breaks her fall, but it's not the most delicate landing.

She gets up from the mattress, hobbling a little on her right leg as she heads for the door.

_Of course, it's locked. _

She takes a quick glance around the room, hoping to find something she can use as a weapon or tool.

Curious about the towel and brown paper bag she saw earlier, she wanders closer.

She tears off a piece of the brown paper bag and uses it to lift a corner of the towel. The towel is empty, but she drops it almost immediately…

_Dried blood. _

Judging from the amount on the towel, it was probably used to wipe something off.

She opens the bag and peers inside. Using the same small piece of the brown paper bag, she sifts through it. Women's clothes; a couple shirts, blouses and pants. All different sizes; small, medium, petite. They don't appear to be new clothes.

Her attention returns to the bed. It's exactly like the one in the other room. She wonders if she could remove any of the bed slats.

She pulls the bed away from the wall and turns it over on its side. The mattress slides completely off the frame and onto the floor.

There are a couple of dark spots on the mattress and on the underside of the frame which could be dried blood.

She hears the door opening and readies herself.

A man enters the room wearing a dark jacket and shirt, black pants, a black nylon mask and leather gloves.

_So this must be Malik._

He's about six foot tall, give or take an inch. Medium frame, maybe 200 pounds. She's taken on bigger guys than this without a problem.

The nylon mask covers his entire head and neck, with eye and mouth holes so he can see and breathe.

Dark eyes peer back at her spitefully.

At a glance, she sees nothing in his hand that might be a weapon, but his fist is clenched at his side.

"_You little…fucking…WITCH!_" he hisses through clenched teeth. She swears she sees fire coming through the slits in the mask where his eyes would be.

"Go to hell," she tosses back coolly.

The bed frame and mattress lie between her and the perp. She takes a couple steps to the side, so there is no chance of him trapping her while her back is toward the wall.

_Fortunately, the masked moron left the door open._

He charges toward her, she lifts a side of the bed frame and throws it toward him. The edge of the metal frame hits his thigh before it topples over awkwardly.

While he's distracted, she exits.

There's nothing to her left except a wall. To her right, is a long hallway. Directly in front of her about ten paces is a steel door with a glass window panel.

Glancing out the window, she sees a chain-link fence, the side of a brown brick building and a cloudless blue sky.

She tries the door handle, but it won't open. Her eyes drift upward until she finds a latch near the top.

As she reaches up to release the latch, Malik grabs her from behind.

She swings her elbow backward, nailing him in the rib.

His loud painful groan is encouraging, but the sound of a cracked rib would have made her day.

She turns around, intending to finish him off with a knee to the groin, but he quickly takes a step back to avoid her.

He lunges for her again and grabs her around the waist, then retrieves the small needle and syringe he's been toting with him. It's injected into her arm and back out again, before she can react.

Given the bag of clothes and bloody towel, she knows this perp is capable of anything.

But he's had ample chances to kill her since she got here.

Based on what she's witnessed here, what she's heard from Cole, and everything she's learned about criminal behavior through the years, this guy wants her alive.

_Why and for how long?_ She has no idea.

It's probably just a sedative. If she can hold him off for another minute, she'll be able to get help.

Keeping her aim low, she gives him a sharp kick in the shin. He releases her and she throws another punch to his jaw. He stumbles forward, smacking into the door.

It buys her enough time to leave.

Her exit is blocked, so she quickly takes off down the longer hallway in search of another way out or some help.

It appears to be a rather large floor. She passes a couple of closed doors and utility closets.

By the time she reaches an intersecting hallway, she's starting to get lightheaded.

A few more steps, and she has to brace herself against the wall to remain standing. Her breathing becomes shallow. Her vision is getting blurry. She's sweating.

She hears him coming up the hallway toward her.

She knows she has to keep going, but she can't even lift her feet.

And then she collapses.

**_x x x_**

**_~PRESENT~_**

**_Eames's residence_**

Bobby settles back on her sofa. It's late afternoon now. He can hear the start of rush hour traffic at a distance, but it's quiet in her place.

A sitter was caring for Eames's pet bird when she saw that Alex hadn't been home. Her family stepped in to take over its care.

SVU, CSU and the Eames clan have already been through this place.

There are no messages, no ransom notes; no indication that whoever has her will negotiate for her return.

The sharks over at The Ledger have already done their usual damage. By tomorrow, the news of a missing cop will have reached the entire city.

He hopes someone comes forward with information, but it's doubtful.

He still has the DVDs to go through. While he knows there could be some valuable evidence there, he's not sure how long he'll be able to watch.

Right now, he's just letting all of the information soak in.

His eyes pan around the room carefully.

He's been in her place a few times before. She's neat and organized, but not obsessive. She doesn't let junk mail or clutter pile up and she only keeps the things around her that matter.

He stands up, crosses the room and begins to pace slowly.

In one pass, he reaches for the picture of her and her nephew.

_Wherever Eames is, she's putting up a damned good fight,_ he reminds himself.

A knock at the door stirs him out of his thoughts. He sets the picture down and heads for the door to answer it.

He hopes it's not the press. He's not in the mood.

Fortunately, it's just SVU. He opens the door and holds it for the two detectives.

"We knew you'd be here," Elliot explains, as he and Olivia enter Alex's apartment.

"What's up?"

"The nineteen just called… A woman's body was found by Riverside. Sounds like our guy. No ID of the victim yet. Perp messed her up pretty bad. We thought you might want to come with us to check it out," Elliot replies.

"It's _not_ Eames. It hasn't been two weeks since he sent the DVD."

"Two weeks is _approximate_," Olivia answers.

Bobby nods and checks to make sure he has the key to her place in his pocket. "Got a physical description?"

"Petite, late-thirties, good physical shape..." Elliot answers, frowning.

"Still might be someone else."

"She's the _only one_ missing who matches that description."

**_x x x_**

**_TBC…_**

**_Next, Chapter 4 - Fears_**


	4. Chapter 4 - FEARS

_**A/N…Thanks for the reviews and follows! Sorry this one was a little later than I planned. I kept making changes to the next chapter which affected this one. The good news is the next one shouldn't take much longer.**_

_**To Sell… Agreed. Alex isn't a weak character. I can't see it either. She'll have limitations from time to time, she'll be vulnerable in certain situations, but she'll never be the typical damsel in distress. Chapter lengths will vary. Yes, there will be some long ones. **_

_**To All… A little angst on the way. It does get better. Huge plot twist is coming and I'm fighting the urge to say more than that. ;) **_

_**More snippets from Blind Spot.**_

_**x x x**_

_**~PRESENT~**_

He sits silently in the backseat of the sedan while his two cohorts deliberately avoid any mention of Eames or the case on the ride over.

The backseat isn't getting much air and the stop-and-go traffic through the Midtown tunnel is making him queasy.

He's starting to fidget.

Maybe it's premature, but he's already counting on this victim to be someone else.

His memory of the incident a couple years ago keeps entering his mind…

"_**Sebastian's got Eames! He's got Eames!"**_

"_**Fill in the chief of Ds.  
Call the borough task force.  
Put all hands on standby, officer taken.**_

_**Last time you saw her?"**_

"_**Uh…here. Two AM. She drives home…"**_

Moments later, they arrive. Benson parks the Crown Vic at the curb and the three of them get out.

One of the uniformed officers approaches them. "No ID on her, none in this vicinity. Victim was stuffed in a trash bag and left by the side of the road."

"Any witnesses? Who found her?" Olivia prompts.

"A guy out walking his dog. Bike messenger was next on the scene and he reported it. First guy was looking a little green around the gills, so we got his name and sent him on his way. My partner's with the bike messenger now."

Elliot stands with his arms folded looking perplexed.

_It's Riverside Park. FDR Drive runs parallel. _

"How the hell does someone dump a body late afternoon around here _without_ getting noticed?" he ponders aloud. "It's peak rush hour."

The officer shrugs. "It looked like a bag of trash, people left it alone. But the bag split open at some point. Someone got curious or maybe an animal found it."

Bobby leans toward Olivia and quietly asks, "Were any of his other victims left in a trash bag or covered up in some way?"

"The second victim was wrapped in a bed sheet and left a few hundred feet from here," Olivia replies. She reads his questioning eyes and then adds, "It doesn't sound like his usual M-O, except that each victim has had something a little different from the others."

They're parked behind the medical examiner, CSU and the officer's vehicle. The three continue toward Dr. Warner. She and a tech are squatting on the ground beside the corpse. There's a cover over the body.

Melinda lifts her head as they approach. "Hey, detectives," she greets. Her eyes drift over to Bobby, whose presence and stature make him stand out. "Detective…_Goren_? What brings you out to sex crimes? I thought you were with Major Case?"

He flashes his badge. "FBI now. Just helping SVU on this case."

"Congrats! Smartest move the Feds have made in a while."

He grins bashfully. "Thanks."

"Just a warning. Stabler doesn't play nice with the Bureau," Melinda teases. "Well…technically, anyone _but _Liv." She averts her eyes toward his partner in time to see Olivia attempt to hide a grin.

Bobby smirks. "I already kinda knew that."

"It's not a federal case, he's just on loan," Elliot explains. He gives Bobby a friendly slap on the shoulder. "For now, he's one of us."

Melinda smiles. "Well, it's nice to see you again, Goren. Liz Rodgers always speaks so highly of you."

"Nice to see you too. And give Rodgers my best when you see her," he replies.

"Will do."

Bobby squats down on the other side of the victim. He retrieves a pair of gloves and puts them on.

Melinda pulls back the cover. The victim's face is unrecognizable from swollen areas, scratches, deep cuts, bruising, dried blood and dirt.

One of the officers suddenly pulls the two detectives aside for a moment. While they wait for the detectives to rejoin them, she gives Goren a minute to look over the victim.

Victim is wearing a dark-colored tank top and a pair of jeans.

Eames is healthy and active, and this woman obviously was too. Body size, bone structure and frame are similar.

He can't discern anything about the facial features with this kind of tissue damage.

While his eyes pass a glance over her shoulder, a thought occurs to him. Her right side is toward him. He leans over and carefully lifts her shoulder blade just high enough for him to see the back of it.

Relief washes over him. _This isn't Eames._

The two detectives rejoin them and Melinda begins to discuss her initial findings.

"We've got a Jane Doe. Mid-to-late 30s. Died sometime between midnight and 4:00am. There's vaginal tearing, but negative for semen or fluids. The tears suggest rough sex more than sodomy, unlike his other victims. You see that she's wearing clothes, but her panties are missing. My guess is this creep kept them, but CSU's still checking the area."

"He's not in the habit of keeping souvenirs," Elliot remarks curiously.

Melinda nods and continues. "Lacerations and bruising on the face, shoulders and arms continue to the waist and pelvic area. All of the cuts look fresh or as recent as the attack."

Bobby remains focused on the bruising and cuts on her forehead. "These marks are jagged… H-he pushed her face into something… _Rocks? Bricks? _Her back was to him. _Or_…maybe he was lying on top of her…holding her down while he did this."

"Doesn't he usually restrain his victims?" Melinda recalls, looking to the two detectives for clarification.

They both nod.

She shows them one of the victim's hands, which has a CSU bag over it. "No rope abrasions on either her wrists or her ankles."

Next, she shows them the victim's fingers through the CSU bag. Underneath her nails, they see what appears to be dried blood and a tiny hair. "I'm hoping she grabbed this creep's DNA while she was trying to get away," Melinda comments.

Bobby looks at the victim's hair, which is lightly damp and stiff with a greasy texture to it. He touches a few strands and rubs the substance between his fingers, then lifts it to his nose to see if there's an odor he can detect.

Melinda settles back and watches him. She remembers Liz's comment about Goren's sharp sense of smell and ability to place odors. She glances up in time to see a curious glance pass between the two SVU detectives while they watch him.

"What is it, Goren? Hair gel?" Elliot prompts.

"No, it's some kind of…," he pauses to smell it again, "…cooking oil. _Used_ cooking oil. Hmm…and maybe…" he sniffs it again, "…ginger…sesame oil…?" He checks for any oil remnants on her clothing and skin.

"You think the perp put her in a dumpster outside a restaurant that dumps their cooking oil, then moved the body _later_?" Elliot speculates.

Bobby shakes his head, still examining the victim's clothes. "Not sure it was a dumpster, Elliot. I think it was dumped_ over_ her."

"Wouldn't cooking oil leave a first or second degree burn?"

"Not seeing any blistering," Melinda answers Elliot. "However, there are a couple of questionable places along the brow line that may be worth checking into further when I bring her back to the lab."

"Most of the oil is in her hair. There's some on her skin and her clothes. It's possible the oil was hot enough to cause a burn…" Bobby pauses as a thought occurs to him and looks toward the two detectives. "…but I'm not sure _that_ was his motive."

Olivia catches his suggestion and nods. "He was getting rid of the body. He intended to set her on fire and changed his mind. Cooking oil was the most convenient, so maybe he works in a restaurant."

"Wonder what stopped him?" Elliot asks.

"No idea. But this doesn't sound like our guy, El," Olivia says, turning toward him. "He's not _this_ sloppy."

"So I guess you two just caught a new case," Bobby says to them. "It's not our perp and it's definitely…_not_ _her_."

"Not _who_?" Melinda asks.

He releases a heavy sigh before answering her. "My former Major Case partner is missing."

"That sick bastard has _Alex Eames?_" she gasps, looking as angry and disgusted as the rest of them when they heard the news.

"Looks that way."

"Well, if anyone can take this creep down and stop it from happening to someone else…it's Detective Eames," she says supportively, meeting Bobby's somber eyes.

He nods.

"What was on her shoulder?" Melinda asks curiously.

He carefully turns the victim onto her side, then lowers the shoulder strap. "Eames has a heart-shaped tattoo on her right shoulder. This victim doesn't."

_**x**_

_**~A couple hours later…~**_

"Good evening, Goren," Chief Moran greets.

"Good evening, sir."

While Benson and Stabler talk to CSU and wrap up their day, he has a meeting with Chief Moran in the SVU interrogation room.

_More bullshit of course. _

Captain Cragen and Detective Munch were at the hospital with a young victim. Cragen said they'd be back shortly and he'd stop in when he returns.

"So is Federal Plaza working out okay?" Moran begins.

Bobby ignores the condescending tone he hears in his tone. "It's a good job. I'm happy to have it."

"Great. Well, I'll get right to it. I'm not sure you should be involved in this case, when your ex-partner is among the missing and could be a vict—"

"Sir—" he starts to interject.

Moran holds up his hand. "I'm going to allow it…_for now. _But only if you promise to cooperate with Captain Cragen, this department, and IAB during the investigation."

"I said that I would."

"Alright. I have some questions," Moran begins, checking his tablet of notes. "You were questioned earlier by Detectives Benson and Stabler. At that time, you were told that more questioning may be forthcoming. Our office plans to be _very_ thorough. We take this investigation seriously. She's to be treated as one of our own."

"I understand."

He already hates this. First, he'd rather be going over the DVDs and trying to figure out where she is, instead of answering more probing questions from the department.

He'll find her if they'd leave him to do what he knows best.

Besides that, every second counts. Eames's life is at stake.

Second, Moran is an ass. The night he had dinner with Eames, she tells him that Moran would have rather been given the task of firing him.

"You were the last person in contact with Alex Eames. Could you elaborate on what took place?"

Bobby explains what happened from the moment she arrived at his door until he left the restaurant.

The questions that follow are similar to the ones he answered earlier, with minor adjustments to wording.

Twenty minutes later, he reaches his limit.

"Have you ever lied about on-the-job relationships in order to avoid disciplinary action?"

Without answering Moran's last question, he stands up from the table. "This is a waste of time, Eames is missing!"

"We're not done here! Sit down!"

"These questions have been asked and answered."

"If you're hiding anything, Goren, I'm going to find out," Moran says smugly. "Now sit down!"

He shakes his head. "This interview is over and I'm getting a lawyer…"

"That won't be necessary," Captain Cragen interjects, as he walks in and closes the door. "My detectives ruled him out as a suspect. If you want to go over what's already been asked, you can talk to me," he tells Moran.

Before he can speak, Moran's cell phone rings. He tugs it out of his pocket and answers. "This is Chief Moran..." He listens for a moment, and then tells the person on the other line that he's on his way and ends the call. "I've got something urgent to attend to. This _isn't_ over."

They watch him leave the conference room.

"Pompous prick," Cragen mutters quietly, shaking his head. He turns back toward Bobby. "Sorry about that. When he returns, I'll handle it."

"Thanks."

"So, what did you, Stabler and Benson find out about the victim on Riverside?"

"Her name is Vickie Mesa. Prints are in the system because of a minor drug possession charge a few years back."

"Is she one of the missing girls?"

"No sir. It's not the perp either. She was last seen with a male neighbor and his friends at a bar last night. She didn't show up for work today. Couple of blows to the head might be what killed her. Looks a little personal."

"Like an old lover with an ax to grind?" Cragen supposes.

Bobby nods. "Something like that. Perp got a little messy with the clean up. We think he intended to drop her body in the East River, but she ended up a few feet from the FDR. Just happens to be in the same area as the other victims."

"Well, thanks for helping us out, even if it didn't give us any new leads on Eames."

"No problem."

Cragen checks his watch. "It's almost eight. We'll resume tomorrow. Do you need to check in at Federal Plaza in the morning?"

"At some point. But I'm going to hang out here for a little while and start looking over the DVDs. That okay?"

"It's already been a long day. You should go home and get some sleep."

"Actually, I'm wide awake. I've got a second wind."

"No thanks to Chief Moran, I'll bet," he remarks dryly. "You know where everything is. Good night, Goren."

"Good night, sir."

_**x**_

Bobby exits the conference room after Cragen. The bullpen is mostly empty. It's a skeleton crew until morning.

He crosses the bullpen and finds the files and DVDs sitting on the corner of Benson's desk.

He opens the folder and his eyes fall to Eames's picture.

A heavy sigh escapes.

"_**Sebastian is a classic anger-excitation killer.  
Highly ritualized torture and degradation sessions.  
Eames is dead. Accept."**_

"Hey… You _still_ here?"

Deep in his own reflections, Bobby jumps a little and then lifts his head in the direction of the voice.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you," John Munch says. He has his jacket on and a few things in his hand, including a set of keys. Probably headed home.

"I thought I'd hang out a little longer and look over the DVDs. See if I can figure something out."

"Need another set of eyes? Trust me, they're never easy to sit through alone."

"No, but thanks. I'll be fine."

"I've got a half a pastrami sandwich in the refrigerator if you get hungry. Help yourself."

"Thanks, Munch."

"No problem. Good night." John heads for the garage.

"Good night."

His eyes return to the file and her picture.

"_**He told me to scream, so I didn't."**_

He collects the DVDs and walks over to the spot that Captain Cragen and the computer tech, Morales set up for him.

After prepping the DVD, he takes a couple of deep breaths, picks up the remote and presses play.

_**x x x**_

_**~PAST~**_

_**Somewhere in Manhattan…**_

She can't sleep. At best, short intervals of time will pass when she's less aware of her surroundings and her discomfort.

She's back on the mattress again. She's pretty sure it's the same one.

The cords are wrapped a little tighter around her wrists and ankles, and they're bothering her. This time, the creep tied her to the bedposts so she wouldn't escape.

Her pants and shirt are gone. It's little consolation, but he spared her panties, bra and her tank top. They're barely on her at the moment.

Malik threw her down on the bed and her clothes were pulled or torn off of her. He blindfolds her, restrains her, then puts tape over her mouth to keep her quiet.

Next he begins punching her, yelling at her..._' You won't move from this spot again! Do you hear me, you little witch?'_

She's under the influence of whatever he gave her, so her efforts to push him off are meager at best. She squirms and tries to avoid him until he sets a knife blade to her skin and offers a stern warning… _Stay still or he'd cut her._

He rapes her. Although she knows it's happening, the lingering effects of the injection keep her from being fully alert during the ordeal.

Finally, he leaves.

Tears dampen the blindfold and she's not even trying to cry.

The strain on her arms, shoulders and back is killing her. It takes some effort, but she's able to rotate her arms so she can lie on her side. It lessens the strain somewhat.

_**x**_

She's in that sleep-like fog until someone taps her on her back.

Her body tenses and panic sets in. She doesn't know if she has the strength to fight back, if it comes to that.

She draws back defensively when she feels a second tap.

"Alex?" Cole prompts softly, tapping her once more. "Hey, it's just me."

_She doesn't give a fuck. _She can't exactly answer him with tape over her mouth.

He finally notices the tape and carefully removes it.

"Get away from me!" she orders.

"Hey, I just—"

The tears are returning. "Leave me alone!"

"I'm not gonna hurt you! I want to help—"

"_I SAID _leave me alone!"

"Listen… I _know_ he raped you!" There's concern in his tone.

She doesn't want to talk about it. "Just_ go_!"

He sits down on the side of the bed and covers her from the waist down with something lightweight. It feels like a bed sheet. "Here. I thought this would help."

She appreciates the gesture, but she really needs him to leave.

"We don't have to talk. I'll just sit here."

_Do I get a choice, jackass? _"How long does he plan to keep me here?" she asks.

"I don't know…"

"Bullshit."

"Sorry. I can't tell you what I don't know."

If she could see his face, she'd know if he's lying.

Forty minutes pass in a dead silence. Her knee is bothering her and the restraints make it worse. Too much pressure in one spot. She needs them loosened somehow.

_Well, he did promise bathroom breaks._

"Cole, I have to use the bathroom."

"Okay."

He removes the restraints that bind her to the bedposts, but leaves the ropes that are tied around her wrists and ankles.

She's able to bring her arms down in front of her. It takes a moment to get the circulation back.

Alex sits up slowly, feeling lightheaded and weak, but relieved to be free of the bed restraints. She'd knock Cole out of the way and head for the door if she was physically able to.

She reaches underneath the sheet he just put over her and adjusts her clothing. It's a struggle, both emotionally and physically and she tries not to let it show. She feels his eyes watching her.

When she appears to be finished, Cole wraps his arms around her and hugs her. She doesn't even have time to react. Her arms are caught between them, so she can't do anything with them.

He soon realizes that she has some tender spots where Malik hit her and loosens his grip.

"I'm so sorry," he offers. "When I've got Amanda back, this creep's dead."

She doesn't like to be grabbed. _Especially_ by someone she hardly knows. She allows him to comfort her for a moment, but draws back sooner than he'd like.

The blindfold is covered in sweat and tears. She reaches up to remove it and he covers her hand to stop her. "Leave it on."

"Why?"

"Videos cameras… _Big prick is watching_," he grumbles in a hushed tone.

"Like I give a shit," she replies, making no effort to hide her voice.

"Please just do what he says."

"Is he afraid I'll ID this place when I go to the police? Too late, I've already seen it. Cops get convictions with less evidence than this."

"Shhh…" he cautions, concerned about the recording devices in that room.

"You know what's interesting…? _You're_ the only part of this fucked-up situation that I haven't seen! Why is that, Cole?"

"_I'm_ not the one calling the shots," he argues.

"Yeah? Prove it!"

"When I know it's safe, I'll let you see what I look like."

"Fine."

"By the way, you're not missing much. I could use a haircut," he adds lightly.

He helps her to the bathroom again. Much to her surprise, she hears him leave to give her some privacy. He tells her he's just outside the door. She doesn't hear it close completely and assumes he's watching.

At the moment, she really doesn't care.

With some effort, she manages to get her panties down. Everything hurts. Her knee doesn't flex without some soreness. She can't even get it comfortable as she sits.

More tears fall.

She's been a cop for most of her life. _Why couldn't she stop this?_

Several minutes pass before she realizes she's _just_ sitting there. She finishes part of the reason she came in. Mostly out of habit, she reaches around for some toilet paper and can't find any.

Cole announces himself and re-enters the bathroom to hand her a roll.

It's a new roll. She's not going to ask where it came from. He's obviously trying to be nice, although she's still not sure why.

"Thanks," she tells him.

"No problem."

She expects him to leave, but he doesn't. He's seen just about everything, but she'd like a shred of her dignity back. "Uh…Cole? I have to…"

He turns around. "Go ahead. I'm facing the other way."

She stands back up slowly.

"Uh… H-he wants me to…umm…give you a bath," Cole adds hesitantly while he waits.

"He can go to hell," she responds flatly.

"Alex, I—"

"Yeah, I get it. He wants to wash any DNA off me."

"He said it's either him or me…"

"Then _screw you both_!"

Cole sighs. "Come on, Alex… This isn't for _MY_ benefit. _You think_ I like this situation?"

"Hell, I don't know… I don't know you!"

"Well, I don't. And I need you to trust me."

"Why?"

"Look, I'll make it easy on you. Can't promise you'll get the same deal from him."

"If the NYPD finds my dead body, _there's gonna be_ evidence to nail that sonofabitch!"

"It's not worth it! Let's just get it over with."

"He can go fuck himself!"

"You already know what he'll do," he states wearily. "Just let me help—"

"No!" she says adamantly. "This is humiliating enough."

He sighs. "At least let me clean your cuts and put some ointment on you. Your skin's too nice to get an infection."

After a long pause, she agrees.

_**x**_

She sits on the closed toilet lid while Cole tends to the cuts and scratches with peroxide and gauze pads.

Most of them are due to the ropes being too tight. A few times, Malik hit her hard enough to break the skin. It felt like he had something in his hand.

_Maybe he wears a ring?_

But Cole's gentle and mindful of any sore places, which she appreciates. While she'd rather be alone, this could be worse.

He finishes cleaning the cuts and puts some bandages on them.

"I'm sorry, I have to…put the restraints back on too. I won't make them tight."

She has bruises on her arms, legs and back. Her knee is a little swollen.

Just before he replaces the restraints, he reaches into his pocket and retrieves a bottle of pills. She hears the pills rattle as he sets it in her hand.

"Here's some Aleve," he offers. He hands her a bottle of water next. "I'll get you some ice a little later."

"You _just happen_ to be carrying Aleve, bandages and peroxide with you?" she asks suspiciously.

"I know what Malik is like."

"Who else has he attacked?"

"If by 'attacked' you mean getting jumped by his 280-pound thugs…? Well, there's me. I fought back, but I was outnumbered." He lowers his voice and leans toward her ear. "I'm working on a plan to get us out of here. We'll have to sit tight for now."

"This is not the first time I've been someone's prisoner. I escaped then and I'll get out this."

"Alex, please…?"

"Please _what?_"

"Please don't. Let me make us a plan."

"_You expect me_ to just sit on a mattress _and wait_…?"

"You don't know him like I do. Trust me."

"He wants something, Cole. Otherwise, he would have killed me."

"_You think_ he's just going to let you walk out of here?"

"We'll see who comes up with a plan _first_," she asserts.

She pushes the cap off the bottle of pills and there's a foil seal. She checks all along the top for breaks in the seal. Then, using her fingernail, she removes it. Beneath the wad of cotton, she finds the tablets.

She rubs one of the pills between her fingers. _Small, oval-shaped._ It's probably Aleve. He made a point of leaving the bottle sealed so she could see for herself.

She unscrews the cap on the water, tosses two pills in her mouth and swallows them down.

"So you're a cop?" he prompts, needing to change the subject.

"Surprised you knew that," she retorts.

"Why?"

"You think I can't handle myself."

"I never said—" He pauses, not wanting to turn this into a dispute. "I knew you were a cop… Just making conversation."

"Yes. I was until I resigned," she answers.

"Why did you?"

"They outed my partner. I didn't agree with their reasons."

"I don't particularly like the police."

"I guess it has something to do with Amanda, right?"

"Some of it, yes. But I don't trust them," Cole replies.

"_Any_ of them?"

"_Mostly_ the NYPD."

"Malik came after both of us. There has to be a connection somewhere. Someone we both know. Do you know any of his other victims? Have you seen or heard him with anyone else?" she asks.

"No I don't. He has people he's in contact with regularly. A phone call, then he's gone. I don't know what it's about, he speaks another language."

"Where the hell are we? Give me an address."

"I—I really don't know, Alex." He nudges her a couple times letting her know that he can't say anything at the moment, but he'll explain later.

She nods. "Aren't you from around here? Where do you live?"

"From New York…yes. I'm not a city guy by choice. Used to live in Bensonhurst, but I've been staying with a friend in Bulls Head. Haven't been home lately, but I don't think he cares. We're not that close."

"Where did you grow up?"

"Wow, so many questions," he chuckles. "Okay… But _only_ if you tell me where you grew up."

"Inwood."

"Born in Bensonhurst. I bounced around foster homes between Staten Island and Brooklyn."

"What happened with your parents?"

"I don't remember them. They died before my 2nd birthday. Car accident. No brothers or sisters. What about your family?"

"Dad was a cop, mom stayed at home. Dad's retired now. My brother's a cop. Two of my cousins are cops."

"Wow, so the whole family caught the bug, huh?" he teases.

"You _really don't_ like cops?"

He nudges her lightly. "No, but I'll make an exception for _adorable ex-cops_."

_**x x x**_

_**TBC…**_

_**Next, Chapter 5 – Risks **_

_**A/N 2 - There's a big reason why Cole hates cops, but it might not be what you think. There's also a big reason why the SVU case had nothing to do with Alex's case. You'll find out pretty soon. After this, the story takes a slightly different turn which I think you'll all like. **_


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N… So sorry, readers! I thought I posted this one already, but apparently I didn't. Fortunately, I've been busy with chapter 6 so you'll hardly have to wait for that one. I have a hunch chapter 7 will be pretty quick to write, because I've had that one mapped out for a long time.**

**I don't love this chapter, but I think it's because I'm anxious to get to the next few. There are important details here. A little more angst. I promise we're almost through it.  
**

* * *

_**x x x**_

_**PAST**_

_**~Somewhere in Manhattan…~**_

It's been eight days. Despite having slept through chunks of it, it seems longer.

_Jo Gage was nothing compared to this. _

_This is prison._

For 24 hours a day, she sits or lies on a mattress. She can't leave, untie the restraints or refuse any of his orders, or Malik will 'punish' her.

Cole warns her about the bath, but Malik carries out his threat. He injects her with more sedatives and throws her into a tub of water. After that, he rapes her.

The third attack is probably the worst. She's in no condition to fight him, so he doesn't bother with the sedative.

Apparently, Malik wants her fed, bathed, kept alive and _completely_ submissive.

Cole brings her food and tends to basic needs. It's mostly by direct order, but he's the only one who shows any concern for her.

He's attentive when she's hurt or sick, and will sometimes remain with her hours after an attack.

She appreciates the help and the company, but there are times when she'd rather be left alone.

Cole wants her to play it safe. Just abide by _'the rules' _a little longer, until he can make a plan to get them both out of there safely.

_But she can't wait around for that to happen._

_She won't last._

_**x**_

Hours after Malik's last attack, she lies there.

Her wrists are tied to the head posts. She works on one of the knots until she has it untied. If anything, she's getting faster at this.

Running her fingers along the twine strands, she finds more knots and unties them. The tension in the ropes relaxes and her hands are free.

For a minute or two, she relishes the feeling of being able to move her wrists and hands. There are new cuts and abrasions from the last attack. They're bothering her, but she can't deal with them now.

She slips her blindfold off. There's just the rope around her ankles to remove.

The bed sheet that Cole brought her is near the foot of the bed. Using her feet, she lifts the edge of it until it covers her ankles.

She lets a few minutes pass in case Malik is watching the cameras. Then she draws her arms away from the head posts, pulls her feet up and begins untying the ropes around her ankles.

When she's done, she slowly extends her legs back down and slips her feet under the sheet again.

She gathers both sets of ropes in her hands and wraps the ends around her fingers.

_The next person through that door is either going to get strangled or tied up. _

If it's Malik, she'll go for the throat. If it's Cole, she'll restrain him. It'll probably take a good punch to slow either one down.

She doesn't want to hurt Cole, but if he sees her trying to escape he'll stop her. Maybe he thinks it'll prevent another attack.

She can't stay mad at him for too long. He saved her ass a couple times.

She knows their location now. The building is about half way between the ninth and the seventh precincts, maybe nine or ten blocks from there. With any luck, she won't have to run far before she finds an officer.

They'll call for back-up and get Cole and Amanda out safely.

Hopefully, the cops will arrest Malik and his crew before they try to escape.

_**x**_

She hears footsteps approach the door from the hallway, but they continue on. She's already on edge wondering who she'll have to fight, so this doesn't help and neither do the next twenty-five minutes of dead silence while she waits.

She hears footsteps again and this time the door opens. She lies there pretending to sleep.

"Hey, Alex… Just me," Cole greets as he enters. He knows that Malik's been there.

She doesn't know what happens to Cole whenever Malik is in there with her. He's usually escorted out rather hastily by Malik's men, and then kept away for hours.

She senses that they are forcing him to do work. Might be some sort of manual labor. Obviously, it's nothing legal. It's probably in exchange for not getting pummeled by Malik's men. Cole usually clams up about it when she asks.

She's never actually seen Cole, because she's forced to wear the blindfold. It's just her luck that anytime she takes it off, Malik or one of his men will show up.

_**x**_

She readies herself. Cole mentioned that he wears glasses so she'll aim low.

When Cole squats down beside the bed to check on her, she swings her fist and strikes his jaw.

He lets out a couple of grunts and tumbles backward. Alex quickly rolls out of bed and onto the floor, taking the bed sheet and ropes with her.

"Wh-what the…?" Cole groans aloud. He _really_ _shouldn't_ be surprised_. _He's figuring out just how persistent she is.

She tackles him as he's trying to get back up and then rolls him onto his stomach.

He would have to hit her, elbow her or hurt her in some way to stop her and he doesn't want to do that. He tries to roll out from under her instead, but she's already got him pinned.

She takes his wrists and ties them to the bed frame with the ropes.

"I'm sorry, Cole. I'll send someone for you and Amanda. I promise." She has no idea where Amanda is and she's never heard him mention it. He only says that she's alive and somewhere in this building.

"How the hell do you plan to get out of here?" he asks, sounding more worried than upset.

She ignores his question and starts reaching into his front jeans pocket for his knife. "I need your knife…"

"Wait…. Alex, stop! Rodden and Malik are out there!" he warns. Rodden is one of Malik's guards. Definitely not one to mess with.

She has the edge of the pocket knife in her fingertips, but he twists his body out of her reach before she can take it.

"Give me the damn knife!" she orders.

"Come on! You don't want to do this!"

"You won't help me, _I have no choice!_" she hisses back.

"_I never said_…" Cole's words are cut off as the door suddenly swings open. Malik and Rodden step inside and silence fills the room.

Rodden is about six foot six, with a large build. She can't guess his weight.

He has dark eyes, an olive complexion and short dark hair which is more like a buzz cut. A couple scars on his face and neck. _Knife cuts,_ she assumes. He's about 35 years old.

She's never seen Malik's face. He wears a nylon hood that covers his whole head and neck, except for a couple slits in the fabric for his mouth, nose and eyes. There's nothing special about the hood. Looks like it's just to hide his identity.

Cole glances over his shoulder at the two visitors nervously, then looks back at Alex. While his back is toward the two men, he allows her to retrieve his pocket knife.

As Rodden takes his first step toward her, Cole quickly tries to get free of the restraints so he can help her.

Alex readies herself with the knife in hand. She dodges Rodden's first attempt to grab her. On the next attempt, he has her by the arms and wrestles her to the floor.

She lands on her side and rolls over onto her back with the knife still in her hand. Rodden restrains the arm with the knife to prevent her from using it. As he tries to pry it away from her, she nails him in the stomach with her knee.

She was aiming for his crotch, but he moved. Judging from his groan, it sounds like it hurt. _Good. _

Malik remains by the doorway with his arms folded.

_The woman has moxie. He's never met anyone like her. _

_But she WILL learn to respect his rules._

Alex retains the knife in her hand and thrusts it at Rodden. He stops her hand just shy of cutting him. Using his other hand, he slaps her hard.

Her face stings for a couple seconds before the flush of warmth reaches her skin. Her eyes are watering.

His next swing bats the pocket knife from her hand and sends it across the room. He quickly has her pinned.

She tries to get free of him, but can't. A smirk appears on the thug's face.

Malik orders Rodden off her and takes his place. When Alex attempts to fight him off, Malik takes another vial out of his pocket.

Her reflexes are faster this time. She swats it with her arm, sending the vial a few feet out of Malik's reach.

He orders Rodden to retrieve it while he hastily grabs her up by the collar and drags her face up close to his. "I warned you about your behavior!," he hisses back at her. "_You DO_ remember what happened the last time you acted up?"

"Go to hell!" she tosses back.

Her arms are pinned beneath her, but she already knows she can get one of them free. While he's snarling at her, she throws her best punch.

Malik is jarred for an instant, which gives her a chance to move out of his reach until Rodden corners her.

She gets in a couple more jabs with her knees and her feet, until they pin her down. Malik injects the needle.

The injection is some street version of a sedative. Probably mixed with other drugs too and the potency varies. Along with headaches, weakness and nausea, she's felt mild hallucinogenic effects before.

Malik begins trying to remove her panties. She's horrified when hears Malik tell Rodden that he'll_ 'get a turn._'

Cole gets himself free from the ropes and rushes toward them. He grabs one of Alex's arms, pulls her away from Malik and then retreats to the corner of the room.

"I've got her! I've got her! She won't leave," he tosses back at Malik fearfully, hoping it's enough.

Although a little woozy from the struggle, Alex makes a move for Cole's knife. But he's not letting her go.

Malik glares at her, then reaches up to rub the spot where she punched him.

Cole watches him anxiously. His own jaw still hurts where she punched him and he knows she didn't hold back on Malik.

Malik drags a phone out of his pocket, glances at it, then puts it back.

After Rodden and Malik exchange a few words privately, Malik turns back to Cole. "It's _YOUR_ job to keep control of the woman!" He turns his gaze toward the pocket knife laying open on the floor. He walks over to it and picks it up. "Where did she get _this_?" he asks Cole accusingly.

"Uh—"

"I stole it from him," Alex interrupts. "Not his fault."

"_I decide_ who's fault it is."

He gives Rodden a nod and Rodden approaches Cole. He hesitates long enough to keep Cole worried about what he'll do, and then delivers a sharp kick to his side. Cole gasps loudly as the pain shoots through him. He slumps over a little, while still holding onto Alex.

"That's just a sample, _you pathetic piece of shit_, now _RESTRAIN HER!_" Malik orders Cole.

Malik approaches Alex next. "I won't forget this little display from you either, _witch!_" At that, he slaps her.

To both of them, he adds, "I don't have time to address this disobedience. You'll both be punished when I return!"

Malik and Rodden leave the room.

Cole sits up slowly, favoring his side. It takes him a minute or two before his breathing is back to normal.

He returns his gaze to his weary companion. For the moment, her breathing is haggard.

He sees that her clothing is barely on her and reaches over to fix them. But Alex hastily pulls away and straightens them herself.

She blinks her eyes a couple times, her vision seems a little fuzzy. Nausea stirs inside her while her stomach announces the need for food. She couldn't eat if she wanted to.

Turning her bleary eyes toward the door way, she thinks she sees a gap. Looks like the door didn't shut completely. She starts scooting toward it sluggishly.

Cole sighs as he watches her. "Alex, _wait…"_

She ignores him. She can't stand another second in this place.

He catches up with her, grabs her by the arm to slow her down and she shrugs him off. "_Leave me alone,_ _Cole!_"

"No! Stop!"

"LET GO OF ME!" she argues, when he grabs for her again.

"Not letting you do this."

"I need to get out! PLEASE just get me out!"

He holds her back. "It won't work, Alex! Not yet!"

"Cole, _PLEASE!"_ she cries.

A layer of perspiration covers her face, neck and chest. She's overheated, tired.

He wraps an arm around her to comfort her.

"Shhh... Soon. I promise."

_**x**_

Within minutes she's asleep. Cole's eyes drift over her with worry.

What's happening here isn't his fault. But he feels a little responsible for her being stuck in this situation.

He plans to tell her _everything. _But _not until_ he knows they're somewhere safe.

She'll probably be upset that he lied to her about a few things.

But he hopes she'll understand '_why_' he had to do it.

_**x**_

He carries her back to the mattress, lays her down on it and covers her with the blanket. Once the sedative takes effect, she'll be asleep for a couple hours.

He gets up and wanders toward the bathroom. While looking in the mirror, he sees some redness where she punched him. His rib is a lot worse where Rodden kicked him.

_Most_ of his bumps and bruises are from Malik's guys. Sure he defends himself. They all outweigh him by 150 pounds or more.

He could take on Malik and maybe one of the others, but not the whole fleet_. _He gets his exercise from biking and trail hikes. He's never been one for _'bulking up'_ or whatever some guys do.

He retrieves a packet of pain pills from his pocket, pops them in his mouth and scoops up a handful of water from the faucet to swallow them down.

Then he returns to the bed where Alex lies. Reluctantly, he retrieves the ropes and binds her wrists and ankles with the rope.

The blindfold is rolled up in some part of the bed sheet, so it escapes his mind.

At this point, he'll usually leave.

But he peers at her a moment longer, wondering if that's such a good idea.

_**x**_

Alex awakens a few hours later with a headache and some nausea. Her energy is still lagging but it's no worse than usual. She sits up a little more.

The next thing she notices is that she's back on the bed. Her wrists and ankles are restrained and it looks like Cole's efforts. He forgot her blindfold.

Cole's asleep on the floor next to the bed. He's lying on stomach with his head turned toward her. It's the first chance she's had to look at him, so she does.

He's Caucasian. Short, light-brown wavy hair with a little gray stirred in. Dark blue shirt and jeans. He lays his head on his arm as he sleeps, which obscures most of his face from her view.

He's tall and thin with a medium frame. He says he likes biking.

The glasses he wears are silver wire-framed. They're folded and sitting on the floor beside him.

He works for the Port Authority. Network security systems…or something like that. He says he can log in and work from anywhere. Once a month, he goes to their main offices.

Her eyes drift to the door. It's getting harder to remember what she's seen so far.

She found a dark-colored rock on the floor a couple days ago. It must have tracked in on someone's shoe. It's soft enough to leave a mark so she can write with it. She's been making notes on the wall beside the head of the bed.

She thinks about the recent incident and tries to recall what she can. She'll add it to her notes.

First, there's Rodden. She's seen him before, but after this last visit she should have enough for a good sketch.

She remembers his scars, the dark eyes, and his olive complexion. She remembers his clothing and the shark tattoo on his right arm.

Next, there's Malik. She tries to gather a few more details about him on each visit. The drugs he gives her sometimes make her less attentive and forgetful.

So the notes are critical. It'll be enough to jog her memory when she finally speaks to the police.

_**x**_

While she's focused on the door, Cole wakes up. He lifts his head and sits up slowly. Sitting up hurts. Stretching is necessary, but just as painful.

He locates his glasses on the floor and puts them back on. Then he peers up at her. "I'm sorry, Alex. Um…"

"It's okay. You tried to warn me," she responds wearily. Another minute is spent gathering her thoughts before she turns her head and peers back at Cole. Their eyes finally meet.

He's mostly what she expects. A youthful face, with the exception of a few extra worry lines. Almost like the last few years have been tough.

He smiles. "Nice to finally see you too."

_**x x x**_

_**PRESENT**_

_**~SVU~**_

"_**Alright, so he's keeping her alive… Why?" **_

"_**Leverage. Or sadistic pleasure.  
Torturing her…and you."**_

It's 11:52pm. He's bleary-eyed, angry, frustrated and out of coffee. He rests both elbows on the table and buries his face in his hands.

His binder sits open on the table. His tie is off and lying beside it.

He snatches the pack of cigarettes from the table and heads upstairs to the roof of SVU.

The outside air is a little cool. It's early fall.

After lighting the cigarette, his gaze drifts toward the horizon while his thoughts return to the case.

He's been through all four videos several times. He sees differences in all of them.

_Especially_ Eames's video.

Is it _deliberate…?_ Maybe. He hasn't decided yet.

He can't judge anything about the perp's height or size. There's a shadow of him leaning over the women he attacks. There's even less of a shadow in Eames's video.

The camera points toward one corner of the room in all of them. He sees most of the victim, the bed and the wall in each video.

He occasionally sees a flicker of something near the bottom of the screen that's probably the perp's hand or his arm changing positions. Looks like the perp wears gloves.

Morales, the computer tech says that the perp speaks with an accent. Each of the victim's vocalizations come through fine, but the perp's sounds are muffled. It's difficult to place the voice with anyone in their database.

Nothing but grunts and groans in the first three videos from the perp. A few times, it sounds like the perp says, _'stop.'_

In Eames's video, he hears one-word outbursts from the perp like, '_silence!_' or '_enough!_'.

The victims are kept restrained with thin ropes. They wear cloth-type blindfolds. Eames is the only one without a gag in her mouth.

This perp changes the camera angle a little in each one. Lighting varies and so do the shadows. The volume in the first two videos is set very loud, the third is set low and Eames's video is set about half way.

All of the women are under the influence of something during the attack. Eames is putting up the biggest fight.

_**x**_

Bobby finishes the cigarette, returns to the conference room and glances at his binder.

He made a note to check the rooms a little more closely, so he does that next. Maybe there's something here to help him figure out the location.

He resumes watching the tapes.

Eventually, he finishes viewing the first three videos and he's back to Eames.

He was warned that watching her tape would be the hardest and it is.

_This is his partner. _

_Damn right it's personal. _

The perp slaps her, hits her. Actually seems more aggressive toward her than the others.

_Why? Because she's fighting back a little? _She's drugged and restrained just like the others.

_Sonofabitch!_

_You think that makes you a tough guy? _

_Hitting and raping innocent women? _

_Yeah, I'll show you tough… _

The tension in him is rising. Bobby clenches his fists, his jaw. He slams his fist down on the table.

The pained cries are getting to him.

Finally, he has to stop the video.

_**x**_

He collects himself for a moment and then re-starts it. This time, he mutes the volume and tries to focus on the background images.

At first, he sees nothing out of the ordinary.

He notices a folded blanket underneath her head. It's not likely this perp cares whether her head is elevated.

Strangely, none of the other victims had one.

_Where did it come from? Why?_

The folded blanket shifts as the mattress moves and something on the wall catches his eye.

He hits the pause button quickly and leans closer to the screen.

_What is it? Marks? Scratches? The bed frame hitting the wall?_

He advances through a few more frames, the folded blanket shifts and the marks on the wall are no longer visible.

He rewinds it and plays it again. When he sees the marks, he pauses it.

_It's not wall scratches. It looks more like… Handwriting…?_

The spacing and clustering of characters look like words or short phrases.

_Did she leave notes for the police? _

He can't make out any of the characters, much less read what is written. He can't even see enough to judge whether it's _her_ handwriting. But he suspects that it is.

That's what _his partner_ would do.

He quickly flips back to the other videos and plays them just to be sure he didn't miss something. It takes him about an hour to go back through each one.

No wall marks or letters appear on any of the earlier videos.

The first hint of a smile appears in his tired eyes.

_I'll find you, Eames._

He returns to her tape and restarts it. Forwarding just a little until he sees the text.

He writes down the time stamp on the DVD. He'll have Morales or someone enlarge it so he can see what might be there.

_**x**_

After that, he's stuck and it's after three am. He's dead tired, but he knows if he goes home, he'll just lie awake thinking about the case.

He stands and stretches for minute. Pacing occupies that restless feeling he has while he tries to sort out his thoughts.

_Four tapes. Apparent differences between each of them. Eames's DVD seems to have the most._

He glances back at his notes, stopping at one of the statements.

_Perp might be working in groups of three. _

He sees the first three videos having more in common with each other than with Alex's video.

Next note. _Perp's motivation is power and greed. _

This guy hides in his videos. Dark gloves. No way for the cops to recognize him.

_Do the victims get to see him?_

Standing at the white board with a marker in hand, he writes down more ideas, even if he has no way to prove them yet.

_ \- A co-conspirator._

_ \- Multiple locations._

_ \- More victims._

Stabler says he saw some similarities to a crime scene from a cold case about a year and a half ago. He set her file aside.

Bobby glances at the notes he copied from Elliot on this victim.

_Deidre Penn-Solenski. Upper West Side. Raped and sodomized. Cause of death, asphyxiation. _

Some of the evidence at the crime scene was contaminated and had to be thrown out.

Still might be the same guy.

_What about other cold cases? Jane Does?_

He needs to check the NYPD database.

He grabs his binder and wanders out into the bullpen. Hardly anyone is in there. He finds an empty desktop computer and sits down at the desk.

He's no longer a cop. No badge, no log-in.

According to Cragen, he can only assist in this case _as instructed._

So he might get in trouble for this.

_Not like that's ever stopped him._

Staring at the log-in prompt, he sighs.

_What does he do? Call Stabler? Benson? Munch? Borrow one of their passwords?_

He tries his own log-in anyway. He once heard that it takes a while to remove people from the system.

_Enter user name, badge:_

_Goren, Robert, 4376 _

He's prompted for his employee ID and enters that next.

_No access. _

Then he tries another idea.

_Eames, Alexandra, 5798 _

They know each other's employee ID for different reasons. He has hers written in his binder, so he enters that next.

He's prompted for her password. He doesn't know it, but he has a couple guesses at what it might be.

He enters Nate's birthday and the year she finished at the academy. _No access._

He tries Nate's birthday and her father's NYPD badge number. _No access. _

He reverses the order, but still no luck. Then a message box pops up on the screen.

_Password changed within the last five weeks. Request password hint?_

He clicks okay.

_Password hint: 'Partners.'_

A shy smile crosses his lips. He enters her badge number, then his.

_Password accepted._

He searches rape and sodomy cases with the cause of death, asphyxiation or drug overdose. He finds eight that are unsolved. He includes the other boroughs and the number goes up to nineteen cases.

Examining each one, he sees some possible links and some he can quickly rule out.

He narrows the entire group down to seven that he'd like to consider further. Then he begins printing out what he can, including photos, medical examiner notes, CSU evidence and police interviews. When he gets enough information on those seven cases, he shuts down the computer and returns to the conference room.

He makes notes on the white board of everything he gathers about each of the cold cases, along with more questions as they come to him.

By the time he's done, the board is nearly full. He takes a walk around 5:40 am, talks to a deli store owner for a few minutes and gets him to open the place early so he can get some coffee.

With a cup of coffee in hand, he returns to the SVU conference room. Back at the white board, more thoughts enter his mind.

Two victims cannot be linked to this perp, no matter what sort of help he has. Those are dismissed.

Another case raises some doubts and that one is dismissed.

The remaining four are Ilene Kell, Tana Deale, Laurel Fisk and Denise Tanney. The first was handled by Manhattan SVU, the last three by Brooklyn SVU.

He believes that the perp started his attacks about two years ago.

That would include Stabler's cold case file on Penn-Solenski. He adds her file to the group.

He makes a second set of copies of the examiner notes on all the victims and jots most of the police notes into his binder. This way, he can leave a set for the SVU detectives.

At 7:00am, he puts his head down on the conference table and dozes off.

Around 7:30, Benson and Stabler enter the conference room, each carrying a small bag and a cup of coffee. The sound of the door closing stirs Bobby awake.

"Good morning," the detectives greet him.

"G'morning," Bobby answers back in a groggy voice. He slowly lifts his head up from the table to face his team.

"You look like hell," Stabler teases.

He can't argue with that one. He swipes a hand over his face, finding two days worth of scruff that he hasn't bothered to shave. He could also use a toothbrush and a shower.

"Looks like you've been busy." Olivia prompts, eyeing the conference room table and the white board full of notes.

"I think I've got a couple things..." He stands and stretches, and then attempts to neaten his appearance before he addresses them.

Captain Cragen enters the conference room, but he hangs back and listens.

"In Eames's video…on the wall beside the head of the bed…when the mattress shifts, I see something. At a glance, it looks like they're just wall dings, bumps from the bed posts. But it's handwriting. It might be her observations. It's not in the other videos. If we can get Morales or someone to enlarge this, I'd like to see what's there."

He stops for a moment to turn on the DVD player and monitor, then shows them where he had paused the video. Elliot and Olivia walk up for a closer look.

"Good catch," Elliot agrees. He's little bothered by the fact that he missed it.

Cragen nods. "We'll get Morales on it. What else?"

"There are a subtle differences in all of these tapes. Like re-positioning the bed, the lighting or changes in volume. I noticed a few more differences in Eames's video than the others. I'm not sure what these differences are supposed to imply… We know he's meticulous in his crime scenes."

Bobby pauses for a yawn, then continues. "My hunch is that these women can't be his _only_ victims. Umm, Elliot…?" He pauses to turn toward the detective. "…This Deidre Penn-Solenski is one of his. There are three cold cases in Brooklyn around the same time and one more in Manhattan. Lots of similarities at the crime scenes." Bobby directs them to a map he has on the table. He uses post-it notes to show each location and victim. "This guy started two years ago. Earliest victim is Denise Tanney…NYU student. Raped, sodomized and murdered. Police found the body two days after she was reported missing. Since this case, he's lengthening the time he spends with each one."

"Who's this Manhattan victim?" Cragen interjects

"Irene Kell."

Cragen nods and frowns. "Yeah, I remember that one. Munch and Fin had it. No witnesses. The slimy ex-brother-in-law looked good for it, but it wasn't him."

"I think we need to go back and interview the witnesses, the suspects, family, friends of these other victims," Bobby adds. "Somewhere, he's made mistakes. The earlier cases are going to give us what we need to catch this guy."

_**TBC…**_

* * *

_**Next, Chapter 6 – Breach **_

_**A/N: Next chapter will be up in a day or so. It's just being proofread. **_


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N… Getting closer! I'm really anxious for the next two chapters, although this chapter starts to reveal a few things. Note that Bobby/SVU scenes are now 15 days after the abduction, Alex is 12 days after. Bobby stays in the present, Alex gradually catches up to that point. **

**NOTE: I know that court records are public, but not all evidence, police and medical examiner reports etc. are released until trial. I'm sure there are proper security measures, but we don't hear much about them on the show.**

* * *

_**x x x**_

_**~PRESENT~**_

_**SVU**_

"Alright," Cragen agrees. "Keep me posted." He turns to leave the conference room and gestures for Bobby to follow.

When they're just outside the door, he turns back. "Is sleep in _any_ part of your plans for this morning?"

Bobby shrugs. "No, not likely."

"Might want to reconsider that. If you don't mind me saying…you look like hell."

"Captain, I'm fine—"

"Excuse me, Captain Cragen?" Lieutenant Tucker interrupts. The two men fall silent as Tucker marches in to SVU and heads toward them. "May I have a word with you privately?" Tucker asks.

The captain nods, then looks back toward Goren. "Excuse us for a minute."

"Sure."

Tucker walks by, but he doesn't acknowledge him.

There's no mistaking the way he left things with the NYPD. Maybe they resent him a little more because Eames turned in her badge.

He still wishes she had stayed, but it wasn't his call.

He watches the two men approach the captain's office and enter, the door closes quietly behind them.

_**x**_

"Network support says someone accessed the criminal database this morning using an unauthorized ID," Tucker relays. "The ID is Alexandra Eames. They thought it might have something to do with this case."

"That's news to me. Are they saying it was a hacker?"

"They traced it to an IP address from one of the SVU computers," Tucker states.

"No one's been here _without_ my consent," Cragen replies.

Tucker's eyes drift toward the bullpen where Bobby stands. "You said you were keeping an eye on him."

"Goren? What's he got to do with it? He's working with my detectives at my discretion."

"Are you sure about that?"

Cragen folds his arms defensively. "Assuming that it _was_ Agent Goren, aside from unauthorized use what has he done wrong?"

"It's highly suspicious. I think you'd better find out what he's really after. If he knows anything about her disappearance, he'll want to stay close to this case."

"I think you're assuming too much, Lieutenant."

"Address it _or I will_," he warns. With that, he turns to leave.

Cragen collects his thoughts for a minute, then opens his office door. Bobby is standing in about the same place, still waiting for him. He catches his eye and gestures for him to come to his office.

After closing the door behind him, he turns to address Goren. "Tucker says someone accessed the network using Eames's ID. You know anything about it?"

He nods. "I used her ID to check out a few cold case files. They haven't removed her from the system yet."

"Network security thought they caught a hacker who knows something about her whereabouts."

"Tell them it was me. Sorry. I thought I could save us some time."

"Maybe. But I can't say the same for others… Tucker's wondering what you're up to."

Bobby furrows his brows when he catches the unspoken accusation. "Oh you've got to be kidding me… They still think I had something to do with her disappearance?"

"I know you meant nothing by it. But I warned you about staying under the radar. By that, I mean, don't break rules, don't piss anyone off. I don't care how minor it might seem to you."

"You've got four victims, three bodies and no suspects! Not one damn lead! You've got a serial rapist on the loose, and a department spinning its wheels… IAB wants to argue over…_computer access?_" He's tired, and there's no use trying to hide how much this case is getting to him. He can still hear those pained screams from the video.

"How do you expect me to keep them off our backs when they still have concerns about _you?_"

"What do you want me to do? Apologize?"

Captain shakes his head. "Just go. Go get some sleep, go check in at Federal Plaza… Your choice. I'll let you know when it's okay to come back."

Bobby shoves his hands into his pockets and walks out of the captain's office in a huff.

He does a quick glance around the bullpen and doesn't see Tucker. Last thing he wants to do is run into him. _Nothing good would come out of it._

He leaves SVU without another word to anyone.

_**x**_

Minutes later, Elliot wanders out of the conference room and pokes his head inside Cragen's office. "Hey Captain… Where's Agent Goren?"

"Gone," Cragen answers simply. The desk phone receiver is in his hand as he prepares to make a call. He sets it back down anticipating more questions.

"Is he coming back?" Elliot asks.

"That's up to IAB."

"What happened?"

"He accessed the cold case files last night as Alex Eames. That threw up a couple red flags and networking caught it. I just figured he had someone here do a search."

Elliot shrugs. "I don't see the problem. He was just running a search that any of us could have done."

"You know how the networking group feels about unauthorized use."

"Yeah, but they were partners. Liv and I sign each other's files out all the time."

"IAB still has mixed feelings about Goren and the department's under a lot pressure with this case." Cragen picks up the phone receiver again and starts to dial. "I have to try and smooth things over. You'll have to do your best without him for now."

_**x**_

He leaves the captain's office and makes his way over to his partner.

"What's up?" Olivia asks.

Elliot explains what he just heard from the captain. "Bobby's off the case until Cragen can smooth things over," he concludes.

"Which may or _may not_ happen," she frowns. "Let's go back in the conference room and check out some of the cases he thinks might be related."

The two head back into the conference room. The police notes, CSU photos and medical examiner notes that Bobby printed sit on the table in front of them.

Elliot's eyes drift up to the white board. Various case notes are interlaced with comments, diagrams, lists and theories. Names and locations are easy to pick out, but his sketches, diagrams and a few abbreviations leave room for interpretation.

"How does this guy's mind work?" Elliot mutters.

Liv lifts her head and peers up at the board. "Let's just see what he pulled from the database. I'll call Brooklyn SVU. We'll meet up with them this afternoon."

"What about the handwriting Goren found?"

"I called Morales while you were talking to Cragen. He's on it."

"Good." After another minute of just staring at the board, he pulls his phone out of his pocket and scrolls until he sees Goren's name.

"Not sure we can involve him yet, El," Liv remarks uneasily, peering over his shoulder.

"No reason we can't just meet a friend for lunch, right?" he offers innocently with a grin.

"Alright."

_**x**_

Bobby strolls down the busy city sidewalk en route to Federal plaza. He could have taken the subway but he needed the air.

The bureau planned to take him off any cases in order to assist SVU, but he decides to check in there anyway. He's too edgy to go back to his place.

He lifts his head periodically as he walks. His gaze drifts along both sides of the street, stopping at every blonde-haired woman about her size. None of them are her.

_Her absence seems overwhelming to him right now._

He retrieves his ringing cell phone from his pocket and answers. "Goren."

"You took off in a hurry," Elliot begins.

"Yeah."

"We heard what happened. You could have called one of us."

Bobby sighs. "Thought I could make some headway."

"You did… You got as far as the curb," he tosses back.

"Sorry."

"It's alright," Elliot admits. "But next time, give us some warning. We can at least help keep IAB off your back."

Bobby manages a slight grin. "Thanks."

"Besides… Liv and I don't mind pissing off Tucker, do we,_ Liv?_" He moves the phone away from his mouth and looks at his partner, who shoots him a playful glare back.

He moves the phone back. "So what are you up to?"

"Oh, just heading to Federal Plaza," Bobby replies, taking the door from the agent exiting the building as he steps inside.

"Got any lunch plans?"

"No, not yet."

"How about Marco's in Midtown. Let's say around 12:30?"

"See you then."

_**x x x**_

_**PAST**_

**(Twelve days since the abduction)**

**~Somewhere in Manhattan~ **

She takes off down the hallway in a brisk run. Her foot falls hardly make a sound. She's not even thinking about trying to save her energy to prepare for what lies ahead. Just running for all she's worth.

So far, there's no one on her tail. But somewhere in the building, there are six to eight guards. Maybe Malik.

For nearly 2 weeks, she's been abused, drugged and restrained. She's counting on adrenaline more than physical strength to carry her through this.

Cole's pocket knife is clutched in her palm. She has no idea how she ended up with it.

In the back of her mind, she is worried about him.

She still thinks of herself as a cop first and her duty is to protect others.

Even if she makes it as far as the hallway, Cole will be punished. He's taken enough beatings from Malik's men.

It bothers her, but she can't look back. The New York City streets have never been so inviting.

Right now, she's in the basement. The nearest doorway to the room she's usually in leads into a closed courtyard and there's no way out.

Instead, she takes the long route, making her way through a couple of dark hallways to a staircase.

According to Cole, this building may have been a specialized hospital care center at some point. She's seen only laundry rooms and various utility closets on this floor. There are eight floors above them.

The hospital moved and someone decided to lease a couple floors for residential apartments. And now that's gone.

Malik or someone is paying to keep the space and the electricity. She'd really like to know why.

She rounds the last corner and finds the door to staircase. Fortunately this one is unlocked, but she knows not to expect it elsewhere. She'll need Cole's pocket knife to pick a few locks.

She's reaches the door to the first floor just as one of Malik's goons pulls the door open behind her. He was in the basement and probably heard her. _Shit. _

She tries the knob and this one is locked. She's trapped. She'll have to confront him and she's not looking forward to it. Not to mention, there's the fear of getting raped.

The rush of air through the staircase reaches her just as the panic sets in. She spins around to face them.

This is the one they call '_Snake.'_ Appropriately, there's a tattoo on his left forearm.

Snake grabs her, she puts up a fair amount of resistance while he tackles her down to the steps.

The gleam in his eyes and smug grin make her want to throw up.

_Rat bastard thinks he's about to score._

She puts up with him grabbing and touching her, so his attention remains on her and not the knife she's preparing in her hand.

_And then her reflexes kick in. _

She may have planned to use the knife. Unfortunately, she's been in this situation too often. As he makes his intent to rape her, she lifts her knee, nailing him in the crotch. It's just the right angle and force and Snake doubles over while making agonizing cries of pain.

She's not sorry. This isn't the first time he's assaulted her.

He's barely able to stand, and sort of hobbling. He slips down a few steps.

She hurries up to the first floor door.

For the moment, he's not even trying to get back up. _But if he gets ahold of her, he'll kill her. _

Her hand slips a few times while trying to pick the lock. She's shaking.

_Now is not the time_, she scolds herself. _Just get the hell out._

His hand brushes her leg while she's still working on the lock and she nearly jumps out of her skin.

_Shit. _

_He's definitely coming for her. Seething, glaring, spewing expletives in her direction. Oh, is he pissed!_

In just a few more seconds she has the lock open. She yanks the door handle, enters the first floor and hurries down the narrow hallway hoping to get enough distance between them.

Until today, this is the farthest she ever got.

This floor looks a lot more like a medical facility. The entire floor is sparsely lit. She paces herself as she approaches any dark corners or doorways. She doesn't want to miss seeing one of Malik's men before he has a chance to grab her.

She rounds another corner and there's the exit. Daylight filters in through a window in the metal door.

This one doesn't have a lock, but it's latched. Her eyes drift up to a brass latch at the top corner of the door. It's more than two feet above her head.

_Just unlatch it and she's out._

She takes another glance around to be sure she's alone, and then hoists herself up using the door knob and the door frame for support.

She reaches the latch, but just barely. The pocket knife would extend the reach, so she uses it.

Every few seconds, she stops to make sure she's still alone, then continues.

It's taking some time. The latch seems to be stuck.

Fortunately, she's still alone.

Her leg muscles start to feel some strain from being in that position. There's an slight ache in her shoulders from reaching above her head.

_She can't let her legs give out. _

_She can't drop the knife. _

Finally, the last little sliver of post slips out of the latch. A deep sigh follows.

But as she climbs back down, she's grabbed from behind.

Her knife is at the ready and whoever this is has probably seen it. She turns her head to see the visitor.

This time, it's Hawk.

Hawk is about as close as she'll get to being stopped by Cole.

The thugs named Rodden, Mac, Brick and Snake are the worst of the bunch.

Hawk will do his job, but he doesn't seem to want to hurt her or assault her. At least, that's been her experience.

"Miss. Come on…" he prompts. He won't even use her name.

"Please just let me go," she keeps her voice low, still leery of who else might show up.

"I'll take you back to the room. Don't fight me," he says ignoring her request.

He prepares to pick her up by encircling her torso with his arms. Best she could do is swing at him, but he's already preparing himself for that.

"I'll get you protection from Malik," she offers. "Just get me out of here. You'll be a hero."

"Get back to the room, Miss… I won't tell him I saw you. That's the best deal I can offer."

"The money he's paying you guys won't do you a damn bit of good in Rikers! You know they're going to find me. Unless you want to go down with them, you might want to reconsider," she replies.

They're suddenly joined by Rodden who enters the hallway. Luckily, she sees him before Hawk does. But Hawk still has a hold of her.

Knowing her window of opportunity is slipping away, she swings her fist and punches him in the nose. It's just enough of a distraction for her to wiggle free from his grasp.

Another minute or two and she thinks she could have talked some sense into him.

She grabs the door handle and pulls it open. Rodden tries to grab her as she's exiting. Fortunately, he misses.

The first shot of air is cool to her legs and feet. All she has on is a t-shirt and pair of shorts that Cole found for her a few days ago. No socks, no shoes. It's overcast and a little chilly. The knife is still clutched in her palm.

There's a chain link fence along the border of the sidewalk, a gravel path and then the city street. Six cars, two buses, ten cabs and several dozen New Yorkers seem to appear out of nowhere. She's already yelling for help.

She isn't looking where she's going and trips and falls, hitting the pavement.

She's breathing hard. Pedestrians start to surround her. Someone says they're calling 911.

Slowly she turns over. Faces of strangers peer down at her with confused looks. Scared looks. She must look awful.

"_Ma'am…? What happened? Are you hurt?"_

Between the faces of strangers, she sees pockets of blue sky.

_It's over. _

_She's going to make it. _

_**x x**_

Alex suddenly stirs awake. The same dingy cloth blindfold still covers her eyes. The same thin ropes bind her ankles and wrists.

_Damn. It was just a dream._

It's not the first time her subconscious mind has deceived her into thinking she was finally rid of this place. She huffs out a disappointing sigh.

Even with her eyes covered, she knows Cole is in there with her. He's on the floor beside the bed. With one of his hands, he rubs her arm and shoulder like he's trying to keep her calm.

The last few moments of her dream must have been restless.

Fortunately, this time she's not waking up in a panic, sweaty and short of breath, threatening to strangle Cole because she mistook him for Malik.

"You woke me up," she says grumpily.

"How far did you get?" Cole asks. He already recognizes her escape dream from her restless sleep.

He lifts the blindfold up just enough for her to see. If anyone should show up, she can turn her head and fix it back quickly.

"Aruba," she jokes.

"Hope you sent me a postcard."

"I got outside. Made it to the street," she relays. "A crowd shows up. Then you woke me."

"Anything else happen in your dream?"

"I nailed Snake in the groin with my knee while trying to escape."

"Good! Sonofabitch deserves it. What else?"

"And I punched Hawk in the nose."

He smirks. "I would have liked to see that."

"I thought you liked Hawk?"

"He has his moments."

_**x**_

Although her restless escape dreams persist, they do _finally_ have a plan.

In her opinion, it's a good one. She may have underestimated Cole.

Cole's been able to pick up on discussions involving Malik and his crew. Apparently, there is some sort of business deal or activity is set to occur in a couple days. Malik and more than half of his guys will be leaving for about an hour during the night.

It leaves only a few guys behind to guard the place. Cole suspects it won't be more than two or three.

That's their window of opportunity, but they'll need to do this in 20 minutes or less. That includes a few stopping points to ensure that no one is following them or able to prevent them from going beyond that point.

It wasn't hard to figure out that Malik is involved in some sort of illegal operation. Could be drugs, weapons trafficking, could be anything. She'd investigate it, if she could.

_**x**_

She and Cole sit in a comfortable silence.

In all of their conversations so far, he's never mentioned Amanda's mom.

_Is she still in the picture?_

They've talked about friends, family, childhood, jobs. Anything to pass the time.

She's not sure why she wants to know. Maybe just to help fill in a few gaps.

She nudges him and it stirs him out of whatever daydream he's in. "Hmmm?"

"Just wondering… Where is Amanda's mom?"

What follows is silence. Almost seems like he's holding his breath.

When he doesn't answer, she prompts him again. "Cole?"

"She died. Two years ago," he answers jadedly.

"I'm sorry. Was she sick?"

"Umm... I… Not _here_…okay?"

"Okay."

Two years doesn't seem that long when you lose someone. She gets that. Two years after Joe died, she still had some difficult days.

"I lost my husband. He was a cop too. Killed in the line of duty," she offers, thinking it couldn't hurt to share that information. She doesn't remember mentioning it.

"I'm sorry, Alex. How long were you married?"

"Three years."

A lengthy silence follows. She's not sure whether to mention Joe a little more or just let it go. Maybe Cole prefers to block his painful memories.

Maybe he hasn't found anyone to talk to. It's hard to trust just anyone.

The person she tried to open up to after Joe died was a total jerk... _Kevin Mulrooney._

While she's wading through that chapter of her past, Cole changes the subject.

"Umm…I've been thinking about taking a trip up to Vermont after we're out of here," he announces casually.

"What's in Vermont?" she asks curiously.

"A buddy of mine owns a house up in the Green Mountains. It's sort of half-mine, half-his. He's in Switzerland on business. He has a start-up business that struggled during its first year. His money was tight, I spotted him the cash so he wouldn't lose it. I've been thinking about buying it from him and moving there. He's doing well up in Europe and I think he plans to stay there. This is a beautiful spot. Anyway, I thought I'd bring Amanda and make it a vacation. She's never been up there."

"Sounds nice. I'm sure you two will have fun."

"Me too. Anyway… I'd like it if you came with us."

The request catches her off guard. "Huh?"

"Come up and stay, Alex. I'll cover your expenses. I know you're between jobs. No pressure, just a quiet getaway."

"But… Don't you want some time with _just you and your daughter?"_

"I'll have that. You'll probably want some time to yourself too. I love Amanda, she's my world. But she'll have to go to bed around nine, and I'd like some adult company around. _And…_ I'd really like it if you were there."

"I don't know…"

"I think you'll like it. The views are gorgeous. The air is so clear. Lots of stars at night. Like I said, no pressure. There are four bedrooms. I'll be up there for two or three weeks. If you can squeeze in even a few days, that would make me very happy."

Honestly, she has no idea what she'll be in the mood for when this mess is over. _She may need a mental asylum. _

Some family time is a given. Maybe a little time with her friends or a trip to the shore. She hasn't been upstate in a while, much less to New England.

Her impulse would be to say no to the invite, but he's only offering a place to stay and a few days to clear her head.

"I'll think about it."

"Good enough for me," he replies. Then he changes the subject again. "If you don't mind me asking. When did your husband pass?"

"1998."

"You haven't remarried?"

"Just my job," she says flatly. "I quit Vice sometime after Joe died. Wanted something new and ended up at Major Case. My partner and I spend so much time together, it's like we were married," she explains. Bobby enters her thoughts, bringing a sense of comfort and a little sorrow. Especially as she thinks about how things ended.

"Your…_partner?_"

"Yes, my Major Case partner."

"You two close? Dating?"

"Oh no. Nothing like that. Just good friends."

"I thought you said the NYPD laid him off, or something…?"

"He was fired actually. By me," she sighs.

"_You…fired him?"_

"It's not what you think. He's a very effective cop. One of the best. Total genius. He has a strong background in human behavior and criminal psychology. But he didn't always do things by the book. The guys in charge don't like that. He's been written up many times and suspended. They recently promoted me up to temporary Captain, then said I had to fire him. I didn't agree, but I didn't want to put him through more BS. I fired him...and then I resigned."

"You stood up for your partner. I'm sure he appreciates you more for that."

"He thought I blew a great opportunity."

"He respects you. And I can see why," he says, smiling affectionately. "I have another question..."

"I think you're maxed out," she teases.

"I promise it's an easy one. Is Alex short for Alexandra or Alexis?"

"Alexandra. I prefer Alex."

"Just like I prefer Cole. I guess I can tell you...Cole's not my real name."

"_It's not?"_

"No, it's just what I tell people to call me. My first name is William. Never have liked it. I wasn't named for anyone. No idea why my parents named me that. I don't like Will, Willy or Bill either. There really wasn't a good compromise. A friend of mine in grade school called me by my last name, Coleson. We shortened it to Cole."

"How about using your middle name?"

"Worse. It's Herbert," he groans, getting up from the floor. "I think they'll let us eat now. Want to try something or is your stomach still upset?"

"I'll try to eat."

"Good. I'll be back."

_**x x x**_

_**PRESENT**_

_**~Midtown Manhattan~**_

Elliot and Olivia enter Marco's Pub. They spot their colleague and walk over to the booth to join him.

Olivia slides into the booth first and Elliot sits beside her.

Bobby lifts his head as they arrive. He closes his binder and shifts his notes over to make room for them. A waiter sets three glasses of water down beside the menus he left earlier.

"Thanks for coming," Elliot begins.

"No problem."

"We'll update you on what we know if you'll give us your thoughts on anything you see that will help us catch this guy."

Bobby nods. "Sounds good."

They make small talk for a few minutes and order their lunches. After the waitress collects the menus, they resume discussion of the case.

"How about explaining what this diagram is?" Olivia prompts, showing him an image from her phone of the conference room white board.

The image displayed is a flowchart with about six different symbols and abbreviations.

"Sorry, just my short hand attempt to figure out how he could have worked out the timing of the events. I don't think you'll need that."

"Okay."

"Eames would have figured it out, though." The hint of a smile appears at the mention of her name.

"She knows how your mind works," Olivia replies.

"Better than anyone."

A look passes between Elliot and Olivia.

"So what makes you think this is the same guy?" Elliot asks.

"There's a heel print on the neck of your second victim. I'll bet you anything it's a match to the one on Denise Tanney." Bobby retrieves some printed copies of the ME's photos from the computer files. He shows them the pictures of both victims.

Elliot looks at both pictures and nods in agreement. "He crushed Tanney's wind pipe."

"Yeah. Tanney died from asphyxiation. The same boot print shows up here in the autopsy photos of your second victim."

"The second victim died from an overdose, but the boot might have been a reflex. Maybe to stop her from screaming," Olivia notes.

"I say we look at the Tanney case. Brooklyn handled the case. The main suspect in this case was her boyfriend, William Coleson." Bobby pauses to hand them a piece of paper with the information on the Tanney case. "No alibi on Coleson, but they couldn't make a case. See if you guys can track him down, I'll talk to the Tanneys."

Elliot glances up from the paper and shakes his head. "Better let me and Liv handle the interviews until Cragen clears you."

"Okay. Let me know whenever you get a response about those wall marks too."

"No problem."

Bobby nods. Returning his gaze to his binder notes, he releases a sigh.

"What is it?"

"I'd _really_ like to know what Brooklyn SVU had on this William Coleson. The guy's record is squeaky clean. Not even a parking ticket."

_**x x x**_

_**TBC…**_

_**Next, chapter 7 – Conspire**_

_**A/N: I think under most situations, Bobby as a Federal Agent assisting on a case might be assigned temporary access and given a little more freedom. We know how Loyalty ended and I'm playing up the hostility shown toward Bobby for this story. Bobby's determination is one of the things we love about him.**_

_**Chapter 7 is underway and it'll be a good one! I'm really aiming to get that one done quickly too. I promise you a lot of this will make sense once you read that one. **_


	7. Chapter 7

**_x x x_**

**_PRESENT_**

**_(15 days since the abduction)_**

**_Brooklyn_**

Early that evening, Bobby settles on his couch with the binder open and a few printed pictures scattered between his couch and coffee table. He picks up his ringing cell phone when he sees that it's Elliot.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Who told you about William Coleson's record?" Elliot asks.

"Brooklyn SVU," he replies. "I know a guy there named Sellers. I asked him for the witness list on the Denise Tanney case. He didn't have much time, but said Coleson was clean."

"Liv and I just got back from talking to their lieutenant. Coleson has one DUI. He spent a night in Rikers. There's a moving violation from New Rochelle for driving erratically. Report says Coleson was agitated and a little combative. Might have been drinking, but he tested below the legal limit that time."

"When were these charges?"

"A few days after Denise Tanney's body was found."

**_x x x_**

**_PAST _**

**_(14 days since the abduction) _**

**_Somewhere in Manhattan_**

The door to the room opens and barely a second later, Cole is squatting down on the floor beside the bed.

She had been dozing a little here and there, but not really sleeping.

They plan to escape tonight. Cole drew a map of the building which they've both reviewed carefully. They planned how they'll handle different emergencies as they come up.

"Alex…Alex... Wake up," he whispers.

"Wha…? What's going on?"

He leans very close to her ear and whispers, "Change of plans."

"_You're kidding me?"_

"It's alright. Just listen…"

Hours ago, Cole loosened her wrists restraints and removed the ankle restraints to save them some time. She isn't tied to either of the bedposts. She keeps the blanket over her legs and feet just in case Malik checks the camera.

They leave the blindfold on for the time being. She lifts it up just enough to see him. The lights in the room are on, but more than half don't work. It takes a moment for her eyes to adjust.

He continues to speak in a whisper. "Same initial plan, then we'll go three blocks to the subway. We'll take it to Brooklyn Heights. My place is a block and a half away. I have a couple things you can put on, since I know you don't want to stay in those clothes. We'll drive straight to Vermont and be there by morning."

"That's _not_ the plan!" she objects plainly.

"I promise you we'll get out of this place, but we _need_ to leave town. It won't be for long."

"We have to go to the police. They'll need to start their investigation."

"We'll notify the police later. _After_ we're in Vermont."

She shakes her head. "We're _not_ leaving the state!"

"_We have to!_" he says adamantly, a little above a whisper. He takes his tone back down. "It's _not_ safe."

"Why?"

"Please, just… Let me explain later. We need to get _far_ away from here! Safest spot I can think of is my place in Vermont. It'll be perfect. They won't find us."

"What's going on?"

He huffs out a frustrated sigh and lowers his head.

_He's just anxious_, she decides. "I think your original plan is a good one. We'll be fine, the police will protect us," she assures him.

He shakes his head.

"What's gotten into you, Cole?"

"I can't… I'm sorry. I'll explain later. Hell, I'll explain _on the way_! Okay?"

"Try explaining _right now!_"

"Alex, please! _Not _here."

"How about _you_ try trusting me first? Then _maybe_ I'll consider your plan."

She hopes she can work through whatever this is. It's probably the surroundings that has him so uptight.

"Cole?"

No answer.

"Cole, come on."

"I'm in a lot of trouble," he suddenly blurts out. "There's too much about to happen tonight. I'm not ready to go to the police and I need to make sure you and I are _completely_ safe before I can deal with them. Okay? I promise I'll tell you the rest later."

"What sort of trouble are you in?" she presses.

"We're friends…_right?_"

"Yes, but friends are honest with each other. I'm pretty sure you've been keeping something from me since I first met you. I don't know why that is, or why it's so hard for you to talk about it. But I need to hear the truth."

"I'm not _deliberately _leaving you in the dark, it's just…"

"Just _what?_"

He sighs. "I don't know where to begin. Th-they just showed up, I panicked. I thought it would look like self-defense, but everything happened so fast, I—I didn't know we'd end up here," he mutters quickly and nervously.

"You'd better start at the beginning."

He takes a couple deep breaths. "Two men were there when you were abducted. One of them put a cloth over your mouth, two put you into the back of the van."

"That's right. How—?" Her eyes widen.

"One of them was me..."

"_What!?"_

"It's _not_ what..."

"What were you—"

"_Alex, stop! _It's _not_ what you think!"

"You'd better have a damn good explanation!"

"The man who put the cloth over your mouth and planned to abduct you is named _Nasir_. SVU is looking for him. He rapes and tortures women, sends a DVD of himself in the act and then murders his victims. He's called the DVD rapist. Unfortunately, _I _know more about him than the NYPD!" he groans.

"Why is that?"

"Because two years ago, the sonofabitch raped, tortured and murdered my girlfriend, Denise... _Amanda's mom_," he frowns, shaking his head. "We were talking about getting married when she finished school."

"I'm sorry, Cole," she offers.

"The police thought _I_ did it! They actually thought I would rape and torture her. _I loved Denise!_ She was _my life!_ But I had no alibi that night. I was at home waiting for her to come back from her class. Amanda was visiting with Denise's folks. Denise had been taking a business class at NYU. She goes to her car and this...this..._monster_ grabs her! Two days later, the police find her body near Pier 2 in Brooklyn."

She sees the anger, frustration and grief rising in him as he speaks. Clearly he hasn't dealt with a lot of it.

He continues. "That same night that they found her, I went over to the NYU campus lot. Her bracelet was missing when they found the body. CSU said it didn't turn up, I went to look for it. I saw a man wandering around near the spot where she normally parks… Denise always picked the same spot, because that's how she finds her car. She forgets where she parks," his voice breaks a little on the words, while the memory stirs up some emotions. "I _knew_ it had to be him!"

Alex nods and frowns. "Lots of serial killers will return to their crime scenes. Sometimes, that's how they're caught."

"I wanted to kill him right there on the spot," he scowls. "Too many witnesses. After that, he disappears. I see him almost two years later in Manhattan. I remember what he looks like, so I follow him. In fact, _I kept on_ following him. _Maybe_ I wanted to confront him. I had to know things. I still felt rage. I didn't know what I was going to do yet."

She nods.

"I found his apartment, his food stops, his favorite bodega, his hang out, which is _right here_ in this building," he points toward the floor.

"Right _here_?" she repeats.

"Yes. This is where he works."

"_But_…Malik...?"

He holds up a hand. "I'll get there. I also broke into his apartment. I wanted to see if he had anything on Denise. _Even_ a pony tail holder. I missed her so much," he pauses, fighting back some tears.

"You _should _have gone to the police!"

"They didn't want to hear it from me, Alex! I was their _suspec_t!" he spits back bitterly. "Now you see why I hate the fucking police!"

She knows he's upset so she lets it go.

"And to make matters worse, the police had some help," he groans.

"What help?"

"The Tanney's. Denise's family _didn't exactly_ like me. I wasn't good enough for her. I'm not a doctor or a lawyer, even though I make a damn good income. The Tanney's are very rich. It's all about status. Denise wasn't like that. She loved me and that's all that mattered. The Tanney's hated me even more after I got her pregnant. They love Amanda, but they still hate me. Denise was so happy to be a mom. Amanda's a gift to us."

She sees something in his eyes when he talks about Denise and Amanda. He loves them deeply.

"Denise and I planned to get married and have more kids. And then I lost her_._ I know I didn't handle it well. I had a two year old at home. The police thought I was guilty and so did the Tanney's. Lots of trips downtown, lawyers, a bunch of BS…"

Cole continues. "I had a little too much to drink one night. Cops pulled me over, I spent a night in Rikers. The Tanney's grabbed one of their million dollar lawyers and fought for custody of Amanda. They won. So I lost _both_ Denise and Amanda_._"

"When did the courts take Amanda?"

"Five months after Denise was killed. Fortunately, the courts have been good about visitation."

"You were planning to take her to Vermont...?"

"Yeah. For a weekend. I'm allowed," he replies. "As long as I check in. Hell, she's my daughter!"

"Cole, I'm very sorry for what you've been through. But I have to ask… Why did you lie about Amanda being abducted and held _here_?"

He shrugs. "I didn't know what to say when I saw you. It was complicated. Besides, you thought I was going to attack you."

"Well… Yes, in the beginning. I didn't know who you were."

"I didn't know you either! But I'd never rape you or _any_ woman for that matter!"

"I know."

"I wanted you to see that I wasn't going to hurt you. I planned to tell you everything after we got out of here. But then… _You were_ getting raped. Just by someone else," he frowns. "I happen to care about you too. In just the short time I've come to know you. You're only _the second woman_ I've known to go through this and you've been attacked multiple times," he shakes his head, frowning. "I didn't want to come apart on you. You didn't need it."

"So how did we end up here?" she asks.

"Getting back to Nasir… I collected what I could, followed the news and police reports. And then _you_ became his next victim."

"_You saw_ him following me?"

"Yes and no. He keeps his distance from his targets. So I didn't know 'who' he was after until it was too late. I just watched and followed. I actually spent an afternoon reading up on psychopaths and serial killers."

"Then what?"

"I finally came up with a plan of my own and approached him. I decided I was going to make him think I wanted in on his sick game. I didn't think he'd buy it, but it _actually_ worked. Then I wanted it to look like I just showed up at the right time and saved some woman's life. That woman turns out to be you. He grabs you. I help him put you in the back of the van. And then…_I strangled him_."

"_You…strangled him? He's…dead?"_ she poses in disbelief.

He nods. "Never thought of me as a killer, huh? I can't blame you. Why the hell can't I stop Malik?" he groans.

"Did Nasir have a bunch of body guards?"

He shakes his head.

"So what about Malik?"

"After I killed Nasir, I panicked. I started shaking, throwing up. Too much stress. Suddenly, I'm jumped from behind. It's Malik and two of his guys. One of them hits me in the back of the head. They brought us back here. They put you into one room and me in another. They beat me until I told them everything."

"So _you do_ know what they're after."

"Apparently, I wasn't the only person keeping tabs on Nasir. So was Malik."

"Why?"

"You know a man by the name of… _Hassan? _"

_A shiver runs through her. __He can't be talking about the same Hassan. Can he? _

"Why?"

"I think Malik is some sort of terrorist. He plans to murder this guy, Hassan. Hassan is some sort of political figure...? Or leader...? I'm not sure. I thought someone mentioned _Puntland_…?"

"What makes you think I know Hassan?"

She never brought that name up to Cole. She mentioned leaving Major Case, having to fire Bobby and her captain being killed on the job. She assumes the Feds are probably moving on with their investigation.

Furthermore, she thought Hassan had gone back to Puntland. She can't bring that up with Cole.

"But _you do_ know him _right?_ I don't know the extent of your involvement. I assume there was a case, but you never brought it up."

"Even if there was, I can't talk about it, Cole."

"I'm saying there's a connection," he replies. "As for me, I don't much about this Hassan. I heard he's someone you don't want as your enemy. Malik wanted to make sure Nasir wasn't trying to interfere in his plans in some way. He saw Nasir following you, but he didn't know why."

"Describe Nasir."

"A little under six feet tall, thin. Age 33. Short, thin hair. His nose looks like it might have been broken and reconstructed. He has a mustache which he didn't two years ago. Sometimes he wore glasses. I'm not sure, but I think they're supposed to be a disguise. He carried a California driver's license. I saw travel documents at his place from Puntland, Malaysia, Libya..."

"Have you ever seen Hassan?"

He shakes his head. "Anyway, there's this shipping container of weapons that Hassan and Malik are each planning to intercept. Malik plans to import the weapons into Puntland. He's obviously working against Hassan. I've spent the last two weeks getting container numbers, weight loads and dock times for the cargo ships for Malik, using my Port Authority access. I don't like it, but if I didn't agree to help, I would be of no use to him. He'd kill me and continue to make your life hell."

"Why would Malik want me?"

"He thinks he can use you to lure Hassan, and then kill him."

"Why does he think _Hassan_ would want _me_?" Alex asks, shaking her head.

"I really don't know. Probably your link with the police?" he offers with a shrug.

"But that doesn't make _any_ sense!" she says, mostly to herself. Her head is already spinning with the questions she has and she can't discuss any of it with Cole.

"I'm just telling you how I think Malik sees it. This plan to intercept the weapons container is what tonight is all about. Once Malik has what he needs, I'm useless to him. Hassan knows there's a hit on him. He doesn't know it's Malik…so..."

"You think Malik is setting you up?"

"I _know_ it. Malik needs to get rid of me. He'd rather have someone else do it. Hawk was kind enough to warn me. And that's why we have to leave New York."

"No… _That's why_ we need to go to the police!" _The Feds will obviously be involved too_, she thinks to herself.

"They'll throw me in prison for killing Nasir! You can bet he'll have contacts on the inside. Or maybe Hassan will… I'm not safe in prison, Alex! PLEASE let's just go to Vermont," he begs. "Let's get as far away from here as we can! We'll talk, we'll regroup, we'll figure things out, we'll call your folks. I need time!"

"Running isn't going to help! They'll just add on charges."

"I have _until_ this shipment is intercepted. And then my time is up," he says solemnly.

She reaches for his arm. "It's going to be alright."

Without looking up, he shakes his head and sighs. "I just wanted Nasir stopped..."

"I understand how you feel. _Believe me_, I understand. You have to know that no amount of justice will bring them back. No amount of justice will make it easier to get over the loss. It's just takes time. I know it's hard to hear that too. I wanted to blow the man's head off for killing my husband! But we have to let the police do _their_ job."

He lifts his head to look at her. "What if they question you about what I just told you?"

"I can't attest to something that I didn't witness. They'll question me about the rapes and get as much information on Malik. I'll also say that I sense your life is in danger for helping me get out. You'll be under police protection until they know it's safe. You'll contact a lawyer before you speak to anyone about Nasir. I've got some names I can recommend."

"I don't like lawyers either."

"There's a few I don't like. But there are some good ones and they will protect your rights. The information you have on Malik and Hassan is worth a lot."

He sighs heavily. "Alex, _I am_ sorry for keeping things from you. Are we.._.okay_?"

"I don't like it when people lie to me. _Especially_ friends."

"For what it's worth, I didn't like it either."

"Good. So the original plans are _still_ on?"

"Yes. In three hours this place is just an ugly memory." Cole gets up off the floor. "Better go back to my post before this starts to look suspicious."

"Okay."

"Bye, Cole."

"Bye."

She hears the door close as he leaves.

Knowing he'll be back to wake her up, she settles back and falls asleep.

**x**

Cole wanders down the corridor toward the spot where he's told to remain.

He knows he won't be able to sleep and he's starting to get hungry.

It's after 11:00pm and he's not sure he can wait until the next opportunity to eat. _Whenever that is._

While Malik and Hassan are each consumed with this weapons shipment, he's probably got a window. He'll grab a couple sandwiches for himself and Alex. He hopes he can talk her into eating something. She has to be hungry as well.

But to leave, he must take one of Malik's goons with him.

He looks around for Hawk, but he's occupied. Rodden would just tell him to fuck off.

Drakes isn't much better, but he agrees.

He walks down the sidewalk toward the deli, with Drakes lagging a few feet behind.

He's about to cross an alley way as a black Lincoln pulls through. The front end of the car points toward the street and blocks his path. The only way for him to get to the deli is to walk around the back of the car.

He tries to hurry around it. As soon as he reaches the back bumper, the car door opens and a man steps out.

"I appreciate your help in finding my shipment, Mr. Coleson," Hassan begins. "But now your work is done."

_That has to be Hassan_, Cole reasons, although he's never seen a picture.

Very tall, thin black man. Neat appearance. He speaks with a heavy accent.

Cole turns and starts running down the alley way as fast as he can.

The second passenger of the Lincoln is already waiting for Cole near the alley way dumpster. He intercepts and fires two shots at close range. Cole collapses.

The Lincoln backs further into the alley way until the bumper reaches the spot where Cole fell.

They carefully put his body into the trunk.

The car leaves the alley way, heading for the Bronx.

**_x_**

Alex awakens several hours later. No sign of Cole.

She has no concept of time anymore, but she fears they could have missed their chance.

A few more hours pass before the door opens again.

_This time, it's Malik. _

**_x x x_**

**_PRESENT _**

**_(Late afternoon - 16 days since the abduction)_**

**_Brooklyn_**

He's still off the case, but Benson and Stabler are keeping him in the loop.

Benson called him a few hours ago with a homicide report from the Bronx PD.

William Coleson's body was pulled from the Hudson River that morning. He took two gunshot wounds to the chest. Ballistics report isn't in yet. The ME said he'd been dead for 24 to 36 hours.

_He really wanted to interview this guy__._

The Tanney's didn't offer much.

He's a little curious about why Coleson was killed. It's not as pressing as finding Eames, the victims or the perp, but he decides to keep tabs on that case too.

The best he can do now is move on to the next cold case victim.

Meanwhile, SVU is tracking down the owner of the Erling property near East River Park. Most of the bodies have turned up within a few blocks of it.

This perp has to be keeping the women somewhere. An old warehouse, a studio, or maybe an apartment building?

His phone rings suddenly and it's Benson.

"This is Goren."

"Hey Bobby… We found the owner of the Erling property," Olivia begins. It sounds like she's in her car from the background sounds. "It's a guy by the name of Erik Kent, from Philadelphia. He bought it from the last Erling heir about three years ago."

"Great. How do we reach him?"

"We can't… Erik Kent died from multiple stab wounds six months ago in Philadelphia. Strangely, the property is still in his name."

"Someone's paying the bills," they say in unison and grin.

"I'm about to check it out. Where are you?" she asks.

"My apartment."

"Brooklyn, _right_?"

"Yeah. Can I…meet you there?" he asks, hoping she'll let him poke around a little, even if he can't help.

"I'll come get you," she answers. "I was visiting with a vic who lives in Brooklyn when Fin called me with the news. Elliot's in court, so I could use the back up. What's your address?"

He gives it to her. "You sure your captain won't mind?"

"Nope, I called him first. By the way, he says you're officially back on the case. Don't worry about Tucker or IAB. See you in 10-15 minutes."

"Great. Thanks, Benson. I'll wait for you outside."

**_x_**

**_PRESENT_**

**_(16 days since the abduction)_**

**_~Somewhere in Manhattan…~_**

Nearly two days have passed since she last saw Cole. She doesn't have a good feeling about it.

Malik showed up the night they planned to leave and attacks her again. _This had to be the worst by far. _

She's used to the power rapes and the punishment rapes.

_But not this._

_Malik was livid. _Whatever caused this anger, he had every intention of taking it out on her.

_She wonders if it has anything to do with the shipment Cole spoke of. _

_Did something go wrong that night?_

As she was trying to get away, he picks something solid and strikes her knee cap. Now, any pressure she applies or any flex of the knee is excruciating.

After that attack, he disappears.

It's been a day and a half, and she hasn't heard a sound in that hallway.

No Cole. Not one member of Malik's brute squad or Malik himself. Total silence.

She hopes the Feds were watching the weapons drop and busted the group.

She decides to take a chance on another escape.

Alex moves along the hallway very sluggishly. Crawling would be giving herself too much credit. She can't crawl. She's using her hands, arms and upper body to push herself along. The pain is unbelievable at times. Not just her knee, but her back, her head and pelvic area. Other parts of her are just numb. She presses onward.

It would probably take her less than a minute to get from the room they've kept her in, to the outside_ if_ she could walk. It takes her almost thirty minutes just to reach the stairs to the ground floor.

She's tired and this is taking a lot of effort.

She has these short spells where she feels a little faint, dizzy. Almost like blackout spells. She knows this can't be good. Maybe it's pain, hunger, thirst. She hasn't eaten in a couple days.

She isn't sure whether a few seconds or a few minutes pass in this before she's alert and able to move again.

Then at last, she reaches the ground floor level.

Sunlight filters into the hallway from a few windows. Even though she can't feel it, she sees it. She pushes herself a little harder. She scream for help. Maybe someone outside will hear her.

She's almost to the door.

Once again, she finds herself feeling faint.

**_x_**

Bobby and Olivia arrive and get out of the car.

In front of them, there is a large brick, eight story building. A chain link fence surrounds most of the parameter.

Olivia immediately spots a man lurking just outside the building. It looks like he's intending to go inside.

"POLICE! Stay where you are!" Olivia announces.

The man sees them and takes off running. They chase after him.

Olivia reaches him first, knocking him to the ground. "Why did you run? Did you hear me tell you to stay where you are? Let's see some ID!" she demands.

"Don't have it!" he blurts back.

The man is about six foot two, large build, Caucasian, early 30s. She pats him down, finds a wallet with driver's license and a small handgun.

"Well… What do we have here?" Olivia says, showing the handgun to Bobby. She glances at the name on the license. "Were you planning to use this handgun, Mr. Drakes?"

"I-it's not mine. I—I found it!" Drakes blurts back.

"I'm going to check inside," Bobby quietly tells Olivia, who nods in reply.

Olivia pulls him up off the ground. "I guess we'll have more to talk about when we get to SVU."

**_x_**

Bobby tugs on the outside door handle, but finds it locked. He starts to search for another door until something inside catches his eye.

He peers through one of the glass panes on either side of the steel door. The hallways are rather dark, except for traces of daylight that filter in from different windows.

He sees someone inside lying still on the floor near the doorway.

_Eames._

"CALL A BUS! I GOT HER!" Bobby yells back to Olivia urgently.

He quickly checks the ground near the door, finds a loose chunk of cement and uses it to smash the glass pane. He sticks his arm through the opening, unlatches the door and throws it open.

He doesn't see a sign of anyone else, but he remains alert.

She's lying on her right side, about ten feet from the door.

Looks like she collapsed. Knowing Eames, it happened while she was trying to get out.

_God help the person who tried to get in her way, _he thinks to himself.

"Eames!"

He's nervous until he sees that she's breathing and there's a pulse. A weak pulse, but she's got a pulse. Relief washes over him.

There's bruising, some old cuts and dried blood on her arms, legs and face. There could be multiple injuries. He sees significant swelling and discoloration on her left knee.

She's barely clothed. Just a torn top and pair of shorts.

He takes off his trench coat and wraps it around her, then squats down beside her.

"Eames…? Can you hear me?"

She begins to stir slowly. Her fingers move a little at first. Her eyes open, but it takes her a minute for things to come into focus.

_Bobby._

She peers up at him and a faint smile appears.

_Please don't let this be another dream_, she begs.

"Bus is on the way," he tells her softly.

Right on cue, he hears the sirens closing in.

**_x x x_**

**_TBC…_**

**_Next, Chapter 8 - Reunion_**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: We'll gradually steer from the case toward Alex and Bobby's journey. The case isn't over, but it'll become background as the story starts to transition. There is a little fluff**** in this chapter. Trust me, it'll pick up. **

**_x x x_**

Suddenly, the hallway erupts with activity. The EMTs rush the gurney inside and assist to Alex.

He stands close enough to be with her, without getting in their way. The CSU team files in next, along with Olivia and a few uniformed officers.

Olivia walks up beside him. "How is she?"

"Feverish, weak. She lost consciousness just before they came in," Bobby relays.

"Before she blacked out, did she say anything about the perp?"

"She…umm… I didn't ask." His concerned gaze remains on Alex.

They place an oxygen mask over her nose and mouth, and move her onto the gurney.

"She's going to be okay," Olivia offers with a sympathetic smile. She touches his arm, then walks past him to join the officers as they begin opening doors and checking rooms.

He follows the gurney outside, intending to stay with Alex. "Mind if I ride?" he asks the EMT. "This is my partner." The last part slips out too easily.

"No room. Sorry," the female EMT answers as they begin to strap Alex in.

"Where are you taking her?"

"Mercy General." After another glance at Bobby the EMT adds, "Don't worry, we'll take good care of her."

He steps aside, not wanting to hold them up.

He rode with Benson, so he doesn't have a car. He'll have to find a ride with someone.

Eames will have more to offer about this case than anything they find here. But it's unlikely that they'll let her have visitors for a while.

He'll have a look at the crime scene and give Benson a hand, then head to the hospital.

He goes back inside, passing some of the officers who are putting up barricades near the entrance.

**_x  
_**

Just a few paces in, he sees that the perp took most of the evidence with him or else he destroyed it.

_Where is he? Who could have tipped him off?_ Bobby wonders as he checks the rooms.

It doesn't take them long to find the room where she was kept. The bed is examined for DNA and the rope restraints and blanket that were on the bed are bagged as evidence.

Throughout the building, they find cut wires and broken pieces of a sturdy plastic.

"This perp is some sort of electronics guru. It might be motion sensing equipment or audio devices," Bobby suggests to Olivia.

It may not be enough to impress the DA's office, but it's clear to him that Alex and the other victims were watched around the clock from multiple locations.

More evidence is found by CSU, including a box of women's clothing and a container filled with dirt and what appear to be bone fragments. ME Warner is called in to examine it.

He pokes around the crime scene for about an hour, then catches a ride to the hospital with one of the officers.

Just before Bobby leaves, Olivia is joined by her partner Elliot and their captain. They tell Bobby they'll be there as soon as they wrap things up.

**_x_**

When Bobby arrives at the hospital, he's told that Alex is stable and they've admitted her for emergency surgery on her knee. The knee cap sustained a pretty bad fracture. Any further delay and she'd lose the use of it. The knee x-ray also shows a small tear in the cartilage which could have happened anytime in the last two weeks.

Aside from the knee injury, there are a few deep cuts requiring stitches. She has bruising on arms, legs and torso. She's also being treated for an infection and severe dehydration.

They're waiting on the results of a tox screen to find out what the perp could have given her. The doctor plans to keep her there at least another day before releasing her.

After a quick call to SVU to update the detectives on her condition, Bobby makes a call to Johnny Eames. Cragen has kept him in the loop and has already passed along the news that she's been found.

They talk for a little while until Eames's brother arrives to bring him to the hospital to see Alex.

After they hang up, he walks a couple blocks to a deli for a quick bite. He doesn't feel hungry, but he hasn't eaten anything since morning.

A few hours later, Alex is out of surgery and allowed visitors. The medical staff warn that she's still very groggy from the anesthesia and only awake for short intervals.

The family visits with her for a little while, until an examiner arrives to do the rape kit.

By then, it's late. The family decides to leave and return in the morning.

Bobby leaves the hospital in search of some coffee that isn't from a vending machine. He brings an extra cup back for the nurse who is stuck working a double shift.

By the time he returns, they've finished the rape kit. They allow him in to see her next.

There's a chance she'll be asleep and any talk about the case will have to wait. He's okay with this.

He just needs to see her.

**_x x x_**

Alex blinks her eyes a few times. The florescent lights streaming into her room from the hallway seem too bright.

It's been a few hours since the surgery. They cleaned her up after the exam and gave her some medication. She still has quite a few aches and pains. Mostly she feels drained.

She knows her family was here, but the details are very fuzzy. She's still a little groggy, but the effects of the anesthesia seem to be wearing off. She can hear conversations and other sounds from the hallway, and she's able to focus her eyes on the things in her room.

Her eyes drift around, taking in more of her surroundings.

_She's out of hell...__finally. _But the last thing she wants is to be confined to _another_bed.

There's an IV in her arm for fluids and they're monitoring her blood pressure. Her left knee is in a cast and they have it elevated.

The knee feels numb at the moment, which is actually an improvement. In his last attack, Malik picks up something heavy and hits her knee to stop her from getting away. _The pain just about killed her._

There's soreness and tenderness in her arms, legs and torso. Her pelvic area is a whole other story. She somehow survived the pelvic exam, but the painkillers aren't working fast enough. Malik's repeated attacks left cuts, bruising and tearing. _If she ever sees that creep again, he's dead._

Her gaze drifts toward the hallway.

From her hospital bed, she has a view of the nurse's station, and the main desk. Beyond that is a little blurry. More rooms, maybe a bathroom and a waiting area.

She notices a man walking in her direction. Probably a visitor. The dark suit, tie and white shirt stand out among the hospital staff dressed in colored scrubs and a patient in a wheelchair waiting outside the bathroom.

She can't see his face, but the tall, slightly hunched posture and familiar strides give him away as he gets closer and closer.

It's Bobby. She thinks she sees his binder tucked into his arm too.

Her memory of those last few moments of her escape start coming back.

_So Bobby had been there._ Too many days of Malik and his sedatives, and she dismissed it as just another dream.

She remembers him standing over her and she remembers hearing his voice. She's blank on most everything beyond that point.

_But how would he know I…? __She stops herself mid-question and shakes her head. __Nevermind, he's Bobby._

Except for the police, she isn't expecting any more visitors tonight.

Nothing against Bobby or the NYPD, but she'd rather not see anyone.

Her emotions are a little stirred up. She's embarrassed. She has too many aches and pains to pretend that she's fine. She hasn't seen a mirror in a while and she's not sure if she wants to.

She remembers feeling this way at the hospital after the Jo Gage incident too.

_I'm sure I look a lot worse now__._

The foot falls get closer and closer, pausing at the entrance to her room. Bobby enters and their eyes meet. A gentle smile appears. "Eames… Hey."

"H-hi…Bobby." Her words come out scratchy, weak and barely above a whisper. They probably forced an air tube down her throat at some point.

"Sorry if you were trying to sleep. I won't keep you long…" he says softly. "I just wanted to see that you're okay."

He walks up on the right side of her bed and she sits up a little. As he bends down for a hug, she opens her arms to him.

_He's gentle. Warm. Familiar. _

She definitely _isn't_ okay, but he's helping.

Then the emotional weight she's been carrying around for two weeks lifts, releasing some of the tears she's held back.

She hates crying in front of people. Even someone she's known for years. But she can't stop.

Bobby's great though. He doesn't seem rattled by her tears, just holds her a little closer. He rubs her back and shoulders with the pads of his fingers and he's careful. She doesn't have to warn him about the sore places.

As sweet as he is, she begins to feel a little guilty. She pulls back, wiping tears away and avoiding eye contact.

"I—I'm sorry… I'm really not myself, Bobby." Her voice is faint. Her tone is weak and trembling, and she hates it.

"You don't have to be," he says sincerely.

He notices an arm chair in the corner and goes to retrieve it. He sets it down beside her bed and sits.

She takes a couple deep breaths before speaking. "So you're the one who got me out of there?"

Bobby shakes his head. "No, _you_ did. I just found you a ride to the hospital."

"You're in big trouble for that one," she teases. Her hatred of hospitals aside, he probably got her some help just in time.

A subtle grin appears. "Yeah, I figured."

"Do you know how long I'm stuck here?"

"Another day, I think. They did emergency surgery on your knee. Everything went just fine. They're waiting on some lab tests. They make take more tests."

"Great," she mutters back.

He casually checks her over. Her coloring has improved a little. Bruises on her arms, collar bone and face. Swollen places on her face. Cuts have been treated; some are bandaged, some are left open to heal. Based on the shape of the cuts, he wonders if the perp wears a ring. He remembers seeing a flash of gloves in the video. _Perhaps a second perp did them?_

"You look like hell _too_, by the way," Alex teases, when she sees him taking note of her injuries.

He's been missing sleep over the last few nights, she knows the signs. He may have caught a cat nap in the hospital waiting room before coming in here, which would explain why the suit is a little disheveled. He hasn't shaved in at least the past two days.

He grins. "I'm sure I do."

"But I look _a lot_ worse," she frowns.

"No, you don't," he offers.

"That almost sounded convincing," she shoots back. "How did you find me?" She notices that her voice is sounding a little better as she uses it.

"Manhattan SVU is handling your case. I wanted to help and Captain Cragen agreed. Benson and I tracked down the building where you were held, after looking into some real estate records."

She nods. "So what's with the suit?"

"Oh...um..." He glances down, because he can't remember what he's wearing. The past few days have been a blur. "I'm still dressed for work. I'm at Federal Plaza now."

"You are?" The smile is instant and genuine. "Bobby, that's great! They're damn lucky to have you!"

A shy grin crosses his face. _Her opinion means a lot to him._ "Thanks, Eames."

"What division?"

"Domestic terrorism."

"Did they assign you a partner yet?" she asks casually. There's a twinge of jealousy at the thought of Bobby working with someone else.

"Not yet."

"Oh…"

"They'd have some pretty big shoes to fill. I only work with the best" he adds sweetly, staring right at her.

She blushes. "Thanks."

"It's true."

"Feds will probably be involved in this case," she states.

"What do you mean?"

"Before I give you what I know, the police need to find William Coleson. I think he's in trouble. For his sake, I hope he escaped and is hiding out somewhere. Maybe Vermont. He has a home there. He lives in Brooklyn and works at the Port Authority. If they find him, he'll need protection."

"_William…Coleson?_" Bobby repeats back, opening his binder.

Alex nods. "He prefers to be called 'Cole.'"

He shows her a copy of a picture. It looks like a driver's license photo. "This him?"

She looks it over and nods.

"How do you know Coleson?"

"We were both held prisoner by the perp and his group of thugs."

"When did you last see him?"

"Two nights ago. Why?"

"Coleson was killed. Took two gun shots to the chest. Bronx PD found the body this morning. Coroner said he's been dead for at least 24 hours when they found him."

Alex nods and frowns.

"He was a suspect in Denise Tanney's murder about two years ago. I looked up some cold cases from around that time, along with the most recent series of rapes and murders in the last few weeks. There are similarities at the crime scenes. I thought the cases might be linked."

"They are," she answers, still processing the news of Cole's death.

"What do you know about this person who abducted you?"

"What I have to say about him won't help the case."

"Why not? He raped you, didn't he?"

"No, but he might have been planning to. According to Cole, the man who grabbed me is named _Nasir._ He says that's the same man who raped and murdered his girlfriend, Denise Tanney. The police never caught him. Meanwhile, as you said, the police pinned Cole as a suspect. He had no alibi the night she went missing."

"Except for a couple of DUI's around that same time, his record is clean."

She nods. "He mentioned that too. Said he knows he didn't handle things well. Denise's family and their lawyer used it to get custody of their daughter, Amanda. He tells me that he found and followed Nasir, and broke into his place to get information on Denise. He learned about all of Nasir's activities. Cole was afraid he'd never see justice for her. He sets a trap for Nasir just as he grabs his next victim…_me_. He said he strangled Nasir and killed him."

"Did you see him kill Nasir?"

She shakes her head. "Nasir put a cloth over my mouth and threw me into a van. I woke up hours later in the basement of that building, blindfolded and tied up. Cole filled me in later."

Bobby nods.

"Before he could deal with the body, Malik and two of his thugs showed up. They grab and detain us. They beat Cole until he explained what happened."

"Who's Malik?"

The pain in her eyes says it all.

_Malik is toast._

"He kept me and Cole locked up. When I'd try to escape, he'd rape me and punish Cole because I got out. Cole said he thought Malik was a terrorist. One of Hassan's enemies. He thinks Malik planned to use me to lure Hassan and then kill him."

"Malik picked you out?"

"Me _and_ Nasir."

"But why would Malik care about a serial rapist?"

"He didn't know what Nasir was up to. During a search of Nasir's place, Cole found some travel documents. Locations in Puntland, Malaysia, Libya… Malik must have known that too."

"So Malik assumed Nasir was a rival terrorist until they grabbed you and Cole?"

She nods. "Since Cole works for Port Authority, he used his access. It probably kept him alive long enough to get them what they need."

"You think Malik had Cole killed?"

"It could have been Malik or one of his men. Hassan may have figured out that someone was plotting to kill him. Malik could have leaked the word to one of Hassan's people that Cole was the hitman and set him up to be killed."

"Bronx Homicide is on the case. They'll find whoever killed Cole. So umm… Besides Malik, did any of these thugs…"

She reads his question before he asks it and nods. "Yes. Three of them raped me too. Five others should be charged with sexual assault."

_Nine men assaulted her. Nine. __And there were repeated attacks._

He's still adjusting to the news that she was attacked, beaten and raped, period.

This will take even longer.

"The ones who raped you… They wear condoms?"

"They did." She lowers her gaze. She remembers the showers and the baths. Malik forcing her to scrub off before or after each attack.

For now, she doesn't want to bring it up. Hopefully the rape kit will turn up something.

"How many men does Malik have working for him?"

"I don't know. About 15, give or take."

"You got names? Descriptions?"

She's able to recall 11 of them and a little physical description of each. Bobby notes it in his binder.

"That's all I can remember now."

"That's okay. What else can you tell me about Malik?"

"Malik wore a mask. I never saw him without it."

"What kind of mask?"

"Nylon hoods. About three or four different ones. It covered everything but his mouth, nostrils and eyes. Nothing else special about them. He could have picked them up anywhere."

"What else?"

"He's about 6 foot 1, small to medium frame. About 160-170 pounds. He's strong though. He must lift weights." She pauses to stifle some of the emotional build up, as thoughts of Malik and the attacks return. "He wore gloves, but I did see him without the gloves once. Medium to dark complexion. There's a scar on the back of his left hand that goes from his pinky to about his wrist. He wears a gold ring, but it's not a wedding band. Looks tarnished. He got me good a few times with that hand."

She lowers her head to hide the tears.

He touches her arm gently. "Eames...?"

She shakes her head and sniffles. Anger wells up in her and the tears surface quickly. "I _should have_ been able to take him, Bobby! I should have..."

He finds a tissue box on the physician's table and grabs a couple of them for her. "If he hadn't drugged you, he'd_ only_ be recognized by his dental records."

She blots her eyes with the tissues. "Damn right."

They sit silently for a moment. Bobby leans a little closer and puts his hand on her shoulder. She doesn't seem to mind, so he gently strokes her arm and shoulder. She lifts her head after a minute and gives a nod to let him know she's okay. He moves his hand back.

"There's DNA at the crime scene that SVU thinks might belong to other victims. Did you hear or see anyone else while you were there?"

"No. There's a box of women's clothing in the next room. Might belong to Nasir's victims."

"Yeah, we found that box. In one of the basement rooms, SVU also found a container of dirt and bone fragments in a closet. Do you know who it might be?"

She shakes her head. "I have no idea."

"You said Cole was trapped there with you."

"Yes."

"Did he try to help you escape?"

"I attempted a few escapes on my own, but didn't get very far. In the beginning, Cole mostly discouraged me from leaving, saying I'd be severely punished by Malik if I got caught. He thought he was protecting me. He wanted us to wait it out, until Malik and his crew were about to intercept this shipment. When he knew it was going to happen, we made our plan. A few hours before we're supposed to escape, Cole leaves but he doesn't comes back. Malik returns hours later and he…"

Bobby responds with a nod that he understands without her saying it.

"I wondered if Malik got word of our escape plan and came back to punish me. That's also when he struck my knee. He leaves after that attack, and the next day and a half is quiet. I make my last attempt to escape and that's when you found me."

Bobby sits up in the chair a little. "Eames… The perp made DVDs of himself raping his victims and sent them to SVU. They received three DVDs showing the women getting raped. Sometime later, they'd find the body. Yours was the 4th DVD. Benson and Stabler came to Federal Plaza to see if there was any link between us, Major Case and this perp."

"Cole mentioned the DVDs. He said Nasir sent them. Nasir was killed so they should have stopped…" Her brows furrow. "Wait… How the hell could SVU have a DVD _of me_?"

"I don't know. There are differences in all of the videos which _could_be deliberate. A tactic to throw the police off." Bobby ponders another thought. "Do you think there's any chance Cole could have sent it?"

She shakes her head. "Cole wouldn't do that."

"You're sure?"

"He was told to keep me in the room. He could only leave the building with one of Malik's body guards, and it was to run specific errands. I was never allowed to leave."

"Do you know which errands he was asked to do?"

"He made one or two trips a day. Food stops. He picked up supplies. I think Malik had him doing a few illegal drops too."

"Okay, but why would Malik care about a police investigation, or try to cover up Nasir's crimes? Why would he want the police to know you were caught, if he's got something to hide from the Feds? He knows you're a cop."

She shrugs. "Maybe he thought the evidence would still point to Nasir. I really don't know. Malik is smart about cleaning his tracks. SVU and the Feds are going to have their hands full with this case."

"Well, _someone_ who studies the other crimes closely would know how to make them similar. There were subtle differences in all the videos. I saw a few more in yours."

"Malik had several men working for him. They could have raided Nasir's place and had exactly what they need."

"From what you've told me, the only person who stood to gain by keeping the police guessing…is Cole."

"It wasn't him," she asserts.

"What if it was?"

She shakes her head. "No way."

"Alright, then… Who else could have sent it?"

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," she huffs. She turns her head and looks the other way.

"It's what the police and the attorneys are going to be asking, Eames," he adds.

"Well, he couldn't have done it himself. At most, they could have forced him to carry something to a mailbox. But to film me by himself, edit a video and send it to SVU? Not a chance."

"He'd be found guilty of murder, unless he could avoid it. You know the lengths some people will go to."

She raises her voice. "He wouldn't take them on! I saw them _punish_ Cole! I'm pretty sure his autopsy report mentions the multiple injuries within the last two weeks! He was in a lot of pain, Bobby!"

They both receive a stern glare from a medical assistant who stops to see what's going on.

"Sorry," Bobby offers back guiltily. "We'll keep it down."

The medical assistant moves on. Silence and tension fill the room.

_She's in a lot of pain, she's probably tired and he's pushing her with this questioning. _

He doesn't know this Coleson guy, but he does trust her. She wouldn't defend him if she thought something was off.

Bobby releases a heavy sigh and prepares an apology. "Eames…I—"

They're interrupted again as Benson and Stabler enter the room.

"Hey Alex!" Olivia greets as she makes her way toward the opposite side of the hospital bed from Bobby.

"Sorry, we were held up longer than expected," Elliot explains to Bobby.

Alex's frown lifts into a shy smile when she sees her colleagues. Bobby gets up out of the chair and wanders toward the back of the room. It's to stretch his legs, give himself room to pace if he needs it, and also give her and the detectives some space.

"You don't know how happy I am to see you," Olivia greets her with a hug.

"You too, Liv."

Elliot steps up next, hugs her and pecks her on the cheek. "Glad you're okay. Munch and Fin send their best."

"Thanks Elliot."

Elliot steps back, but keeps his focus on her. "We don't have a suspect yet. We did find some bone fragments in soil. Any chance you took care of our perp and saved us the headache?"

Alex grins at his teasing. "No, not yet."

"Any chance you know who those bones might belong to?" Liv asks.

She shakes her head. "Honestly, no. It _might_ be Nasir. Might be one of Nasir's victims…"

"_Nasir_?" Elliot repeats back.

They're interrupted when Captain Cragen enters with ADA Cabot.

"Alex, do you recognize this man?" Cabot shows her a picture on her phone of the man they arrested outside the building. "His name is Lee Drakes. We have him in custody. So far, he isn't talking."

She looks at the image and nods. "Yes. He's one of Malik's thugs. He didn't rape me or sexually assault me. He forcefully kept me in the room _and_ he physically assaulted Cole."

"Who's…_Cole?_" Elliot asks.

"Why don't you fill us in with what you remember," Cabot prompts.

Eames relays the same information she shared with Bobby to SVU and the ADA.

"So Nasir is dead, but we have no body. We have no way to link him to the other cases." Cabot states after Alex concludes.

Elliot folds his arms and peers over at Cabot. "How much time do we have until the Feds storm in and tell us to stand down?"

"Malik will be charged with rape, obstruction and whatever else I can make stick. Don't worry, Elliot," she replies.

"We should go and let her get some rest," Olivia requests. She turns back to Alex. "We'll send over a sketch artist in the morning."

They say their goodbyes and file out of the room. Bobby lingers near the foot of the bed after the last person leaves.

He takes a couple steps toward her. "Eames… I'm sorry."

"I can't blame you for being suspicious, Bobby," she states calmly. "I still have questions too."

There's weariness, sadness and a little frustration in her tone. But as far as he can tell, their disagreement has already been forgotten.

_"_If you say he didn't, that's good enough for me."

"Thanks. So tell me about the job…" she prompts. She gestures toward the chair where he was sitting earlier.

"You should get some sleep," he replies.

"So should you. But I don't think either of us is going to."

He makes his way over to the chair beside the bed and sits down. "I got the call the very next day. They put me on a plane for a week's worth of training in Quantico."

"I thought it was supposed to be six weeks? Why aren't you there now?"

"They needed me for another assignment… And then another… Then another. So they put the rest of the training on the back burner. They sent me all over the country… Chicago, Houston…"

"And I know how much you _love_ to travel," she teases.

"Yeah. Anyway, they wanted my opinion on a few suspects. I read a few psych profiles, rode with a couple agents, watched surveillance footage."

"Beats the hell out of training."

"Exactly."

**_x_**

The next hour and a half goes by quickly.

Bobby does most of the talking, relaying what he can of some of the cases he was asked to review in Chicago and Houston.

There were stories about his trips and the other agents too. He shares anything he knows she might find amusing.

Intentional or not, it gets her mind off the present situation.

She missed him. She missed the 'shop talk.' She missed Bobby's inability to sit still when he speaks. The constant hand movements, his mental energy.

He notices when she's getting tired. Her eyes shut periodically, but she blinks them a few times in an effort to stay awake.

He'd like for her to get some sleep, but he knows better than to press the issue.

The lights are already dim and the room is mostly quiet. The noise from the equipment is hardly noticeable after sitting there for two hours.

The breaks in their conversation get longer and longer. Eventually, they're both asleep.

After a decade of being partners and napping in shifts on stake out, they know how the other sleeps.

Eames doesn't snore, she doesn't talk in her sleep. She's a light sleeper… _Usually._

The moment she starts becoming restless, Bobby wakes.

At first, he notices the soft grunts, the light fidgeting. She'll shake her head, flex her hand, move her arm or the leg without the cast.

Although he's already awake, the loud gasp from her startles him.

The restlessness picks up. A light layer of perspiration covers her face, neck and arms. She tenses her body and shifts a little in the bed, although her movements are restricted by the machines and her elevated knee.

She reaches with her hands and arms like she's grasping for something. The gasps and grunts become louder and more frequent.

Bobby gets up from the chair, perches on the side of the hospital bed and puts his hand over her arm to still her movements. "Eames…?"

She doesn't respond. When he prompts her again, she swats at him.

He leans in closer, keeping his voice low and calm. "Eames, wake up… It's okay."

"GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME!" she groans, batting him with her hand again. Her heartbeat stammers wildly.

Realizing he has no other option, he raises his voice. _"EAMES! WAKE UP!"_

She startles and her eyes open.

Another medical assistant appears in the doorway. "Everything okay?"

"She was having a bad dream," he explains.

"If she needs something to help her relax, let me know and I'll get ahold of the doctor."

"Thanks," he replies. The medical assistant leaves.

"Eames, look at me… It's Bobby," he says softly.

He gives her a minute to get comfortable with her surroundings, but she still seems disoriented. He watches her gaze drift about without settling on anything in the room or on him. She continues to pant, gasp and shake from the distress of her dream. He doesn't have to check to know that her pulse is racing.

_Panic attack_.

"Shhh… Slow, deep breaths. Control your breathing. Take ahold of my arm or my shoulder if you have to."

She doesn't take his arm, but she does follow his suggestion about the deep breaths and she keeps her eyes on him. It takes a couple minutes for the episode to pass.

"D-did I hit you?" she asks.

"Yeah. But it's okay."

"I'm sorry… Look, you don't have to stay here."

"I know."

When he doesn't make an effort to move, she prompts him again. "Bobby…"

"I'll leave in a little while. Try to sleep." Bobby settles back in the same chair.

It doesn't take her long to fall back asleep. Thirty minutes later, there's another nightmare.

The gasps and tremors catch his attention. She awakens again with another panic attack. He uses the same approach to bring her out of it.

"Go home. I'm keeping you up," she says guiltily.

"I'm fine."

"Bullshit. You haven't slept," she argues.

"I've slept…enough."

"I doubt that. I'm sure you've got to be at work in a few hours."

He dismisses her comments. "Let me try something…"

"You're _not _going to get me to fall asleep again, so you might as well give up."

"You trust me?"

"Yeah. Of course."

He stands up, turns around and perches on the side of the bed near the headboard. They're facing the same direction.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

"Will it bother you if I sit here?"

"N-no." There's a little confusion in her eyes.

"Good. Can you sit up a little?"

She does.

There are two pillows on her bed. Most of the beds have just one pillow, unless someone requests a second. Could have been a family member.

Bobby fluffs and adjusts her pillows, then sets them back down. "Is that okay?"

She's propped up a little more, but this is actually better. "Now you expect me to fall asleep?"

"I just thought it would be more comfortable. I also thought it would help if I wasn't…_facing_ you…um….in case you do fall asleep."

"How hard did I hit you before?"

He grins. "Not as hard as you could have."

"So…now what?"

"You don't want to sleep. Let's talk."

He starts telling her about one of the other new hires at Federal Plaza.

"Worman is fresh out of the academy. He's smart, just needs a little more job experience. He'll make a good agent." He tells her a couple stories he overheard about Worman's training and his first case alongside a seasoned agent. "She was ready to kill him after one day on the job."

"I thought you said you spent most of the last two weeks traveling and the rest of the time with SVU… How come you know so much about this guy?" she asks.

"My boss and I caught up by phone while I was away. He wanted to fill me in about the team. I think he'd like to send this guy somewhere else."

"Just because he's a rookie?"

"He's got a lot of quirks."

"Like _someone else_ I know?" she teases.

Bobby grins.

The subject of rookies continues for a little while until Alex can no longer stay awake. By 5:30, she's sleeping soundly.

_Maybe he'll stay around just in case. _

There isn't much room on that bed unless he turns onto his side, which he does. He faces her. They're not even touching, although her shoulder lies less than an inch from his.

He's able to stretch out a little more without disturbing her.

His exhaustion, the softness and warmth of the bed, and Alex sleeping peacefully beside him helps lull him to sleep.

A little before 7:00, Bobby awakens. One glance confirms she's still asleep.

He sends a quick text to his boss, letting him know he'll be in at 9:30, then falls back to sleep.

At 9:00, Bobby awakens again, feeling a little more rested. He carefully gets out of the bed and gathers his binder, phone and keys.

After one last look at her, he leaves her room.

**_x x x_**

**_TBC…_**

**_Next, Chapter 9 – Visiting Hours_**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N… Thanks for the reviews! I owe you a bunch of chapters. I spent a lot of time editing and fixing chapter 8, but I finished chapter 9 quickly, so here it is. Chapter 10 is already underway. **

**Yes, I had a little fun with this opening dialog. :)**

_**x x x**_

Around noon, Olivia stops by.

"Hey Alex." She sees the nurse attending to her. To give them room, she approaches on the other side of the bed.

"Hi Olivia," she greets back.

Nurse Lori finishes replacing gauze pads and gives Alex her medication. "We'll try you on some soft foods for lunch, okay hon?"

She gives a polite nod back.

Lori gathers the gauze wrappers and discards them along with her safety gloves. She peers back at Alex. "Your husband is such a sweet one. Where did you find him?"

Alex looks back at her quizzically. "I'm _not_ married."

"That man who was here… Sorry, I don't know his name. Tall, black suit, gray hair. _Very_ handsome. Someone said he works for the FBI. The night crew assumed he was your husband."

"Ah…no."

"Well…your boyfriend, then. He spent the night in your room. I saw him as he was signing out and leaving. It was just after nine this morning and I was starting my shift," she explains.

Olivia lifts a brow and peers over at Alex. "_Spent the night?"_

"Yep," Lori answers. "One of our custodial staff was making the morning rounds, collecting trash from the rooms and she saw the two of them sound asleep in the bed. She says she tried not to wake you. Anyway, just to let you know, the hospital administrator sometimes gets her back up about family members, spouses, or significant others who stay after visiting hours. Most of us believe that a good support system can make all the difference in the healing process. The hospital administrator can be a real hard-ass. She works various shifts."

"Thanks for the warning. We'll let '_her boyfriend' _know too," Olivia teases. Her eyes drift back to Alex, who looks a little flushed.

"He bought one of the overnight nurses a cup of coffee. Poor girl got stuck working a double. It's like her third this week," Lori comments. "I heard he kept the night staff company too. He's quite a charmer."

"Yeah, he's a flirt alright," Alex responds. She suspects that he turned on his usual charm to get information. Or maybe he was just entertaining some of the ladies on staff.

"He was really worried about you. He checked on your status constantly. Very eager to see you._"_

_"Eager?"_

"That's what I heard. Hang on to that one," she adds with a wink.

"Umm… He's _not_ my boyfriend," Alex relays. "Just a good friend. We used to work together."

"Whatever you say," Lori grins. "I'll be back with lunch."

She gathers her charts and leaves the room. Alex and Olivia are alone.

"What was that about?" Alex muses, shaking her head.

"Your '_boyfriend'_ Bobby Goren spending the night. Care to explain?" she teases.

"He slept in the chair, Liv."

"Nope. Custodial staff caught him in your bed. And _you know_ they make damn good witnesses."

Alex smirks. "He must have dozed off. I kept telling him I was fine and to go home. He insisted on staying. It looked like he hadn't slept in days."

"I wouldn't be surprised," Olivia remarks.

"So, how was he at SVU?"

"Great. We were at a dead end. Bobby saw the connection to the cold cases. He helped us find you. I think our Captain wouldn't mind borrowing him from time to time. That is…_if_ he can keep IAB off our backs."

"I hate to ask, but what happened?"

"He used your log-in to access the criminal database."

She rolls her eyes. "Oh, who cares?"

"That's what we said too. But you know how they feel about Bobby."

"Yes, unfortunately."

"He really was worried about you," she remarks, echoing Lori's comment. "As soon as he heard you were missing, I think it would have taken an army to keep him away from this case."

She smiles. "He's a great partner."

"He feels the same way about you too. So how are you doing today?" Olivia inquires.

"About the same. I can't wait to get out of this place."

"Can't blame you there. Thanks for the sketches. I think we should have plenty to work with."

Elliot brought the sketch artist by shortly after her family visited that morning. Elliot was there to ask a couple of follow-up questions based on the rape kit results.

"I wish I could give you more on Malik," she frowns.

"You did great, Alex. It's a lot more than we would have otherwise. When we get some hits, we'll let you know."

"Did you get anything out of Drakes?"

"Nothing more than what you told us." Olivia answers. "Umm… Part of the reason I stopped by is to talk to you about Cole."

"What about him?"

"The murder case is still with the Bronx, but the medical examiner discovered something on the autopsy and they kicked it over to SVU."

"_What…? Why?"_

"They suspect rape."

"Cole was _raped_? He never said anything about it."

"Looks like multiple attacks within the last couple of weeks. So the perp may be Malik or one of his men. Any idea who could have done this?"

She shakes her head. Sadness and confusion show in her eyes. "You know I wanted to protect Cole and get us both out of there. _Still_ tried to be the cop."

"I know you did the best you could," she offers. "Did Cole show more fear or anger toward any one in particular?"

"Not really. He hated them as much as I did. They were ordered to punish us for breaking Malik's 'rules.' They picked fights with him and assaulted me just for the hell of it," Alex groans.

"Are there any that you could rule out?"

"Well I doubt it was Malik or Hawk." She ponders the thought a minute longer, then adds, "Out of all of them, the ones that stand out for me would be Rodden, Mac, Snake and Dougsen."

"Why them?"

"Most of Malik's creeps don't care what they're asked to do for money. These four got off on it," she says disgustedly. "I can't prove it was one of them, but that would be where I'd start."

Olivia nods and jots each name down in a notepad. "So tell me more about Cole."

"He was a nice guy. He kind of hated the city, but the job was here. He'd rather be upstate somewhere or in Vermont. His daughter was his life. He talked about her a lot. He grew up in foster homes. I think the foster moms were very good to him."

"You get along pretty well?"

"No, not at first. When we met, I thought he was the one who abducted me. He's the first one I saw. Malik wanted Cole to tend to my needs and prevent me from leaving. Cole would offer me food, water or treat my injuries, and I'd hit him and try to escape. It took us a couple days to trust each other. After that, we talked a lot. He kept me company. I also think he hung close by to keep the wolves from showing up."

"Let me ask you this. Did Cole ever make any _advances_ or…try _anything?_"

"No. Why?"

"Drakes said some things in interrogation."

"Drakes is full of it."

"Yeah, I gathered. But you know we have to ask."

She nods. "Cole was very attentive. A little too overprotective sometimes. You might even say he was chivalrous. I don't think he's known many women cops. I'd risk it for the chance of getting out of there. Cole did whatever he could to stop me, thinking he could prevent another attack. We were together for long stretches of time. Cole had to help me with…personal needs or…_whatever_ Malik wanted," she groans. "I suppose you could say Cole had ample opportunity. But nothing happened."

"You know that the rape kit came back with no DNA," Olivia remarks.

"Yeah, Elliot told me. He also said Cole's was all over the crime scene. Half the time he was in the room with me."

Olivia notices her expression change. "What is it, Alex?"

"Just between us?"

"Sure."

"There were times when I thought that he might be…I don't know…getting a little '_too attached_.'"

"Why is that?"

"There were hints dropped. _And_ he asked me to go to Vermont with him when this mess was over."

"And what did you say?"

"I said I'd think about it."

"Were you considering going?"

She shrugs. "I hadn't made up my mind. He planned to bring his daughter too. At the time, _any_ place sounded better."

"But you suspected that he might be looking for more than a friendship. Wouldn't that suggest that you were too?"

"My gut feeling was that he wouldn't press the matter. I'm not sure we had that much in common. But he was nice, funny and someone I could talk to. I think he could have ended up being a really good friend."

Olivia touches her arm supportively and then glances up as Lori enters the room with Alex's lunch. "I should let you go."

"Thanks for coming by, Liv."

"Sure. We should have lunch sometime."

"When I'm eating solid foods again... Yes, absolutely."

Olivia leans down to give Alex a hug.

"Say hi to the guys for me."

"I will. Take care, Alex."

"Bye."

**_x x x_**

By early evening, she still doesn't know when the hospital plans to release her.

She's keeping soft foods down. All levels are within normal range. They don't have the lab results on her tox screen yet and there's no word on when that'll happen.

Her family has been by a couple times. After she leaves the hospital, she'll stay with her brother Patrick and his wife until she's a little stronger. She'd much rather be at home, but they insisted.

Her bird, Petey is staying with them too. She misses the little guy. Fortunately, when the pet sitter noticed that Alex hadn't been home, she kept an eye on Petey until the family could come by to get him.

She looks toward the hallway.

It's been thirty minutes since she told someone that she had to use the bathroom. She really needs to go now.

Twice today they've helped her get into a wheelchair and then wheeled her to the one-stall handicapped bathroom down the hallway. She's still too wobbly for crutches.

She waits another five minutes, then says _screw it _and begins to climb from the bed to the wheelchair on her own.

It's awkward with her knee in a cast and there's still quite a bit of pain. Especially when she shifts the leg with the cast over the side of the bed.

They're not giving her the strongest dosage of painkillers. The trade off is that she's less groggy, but the aches are worse when she moves.

Once she's seated in the chair, she wheels herself out into the hallway. No one seems to notice her, although it is a little busy. Lots of traffic near the main desk in the middle of the hallway. The bathroom is just a little further.

She reaches the door to the bathroom, confirms that it's empty and enters. The motion sensor lights turn on as soon as she's inside. After closing the door, she wheels herself closer and prepares to move from the wheelchair to the toilet. She pivots over quickly and sits down.

_They said __that any pain or discomfort would be temporary._

_She sure as hell hopes so._

She grips the bars and endures it, while tears dampen her eyes. With the pain comes the emotional reminders, the anger.

She's been told by the doctor and a couple of medical staff here that there's _a long road ahead_ before things are back to normal. She wanted to tell them to stick their advice somewhere else.

She'd give _anything_ to have her old life back.

The thought conjures up a memory of her and Bobby working late on some case. A pizza box sits open between them. They're searching through pictures of license plates at the Holland Tunnel at eight o'clock at night, because Bobby has a hunch about their suspect.

If nothing had changed for her and Bobby, she'd be back there again as soon as she could walk. She hates riding desk, but she'd do it.

The job is the _only_ thing that would take her mind off this.

It worked after the Jo Gage incident.

"_I'm not getting any better on my own,"_ she remembers telling Bobby that day.

The department insisted that she take time off. Go to therapy. Nothing to do but sit around and think about the hell she's been through.

**_x_**

She finishes and prepares to move back into the chair from the toilet.

She got here by pivoting from one to the other very quickly. The chair isn't quite close enough for her to reach and when she touches it, it rolls backward.

_Forgot to lock the wheels... Shit. _

Well, she was sort of in a hurry.

While holding onto the bar with one hand and trying to scoot the chair closer, she slips and falls. She hits the chair, the front of the toilet and the floor, and groans out a few descriptive words.

For the next minute or so, she can do nothing but ride out the pain and try not to scream.

She's already in a lot of pain. She didn't need this.

When she is able to move, she scoots a little closer and retrieves the chair. She drags it up to the wall and locks the wheels. Then she uses the support bar beside the toilet to try and pull herself up.

But getting up off the floor with the cast on is easier said than done.

After three attempts, she has to stop and catch her breath.

Then suddenly, the bathroom lights go out.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" she groans.

_J_ust waving her arms doesn't turn them on again. _Damn motion lights._

There's only a sliver of light under the door which doesn't help, but everything she needs is within reach. She resumes trying to get into the chair.

She knows where she is and she's safe, but the darkness and her inability to get up and go seems a little _too_ familiar.

She starts rushing without realizing she's doing it.

Her heart is pounding, her stomach is in knots and a layer of perspiration covers her skin.

_Get me the hell out of here!_

**_x x x_**

Bobby finishes work for the day and decides to visit Eames at the hospital. He stops at a flower shop along the way. The hospital gift shop doesn't offer much variety so he'd rather go somewhere else. This one happens to be walking distance to the hospital.

He looks through the flower arrangements they have available. Usually he has a pretty good idea of what he wants to get for someone. He's got some thoughts about Eames but so far, nothing here is her.

They have a selection of baskets or vases which they'll deliver to hospitals, but he doesn't like those arrangements at all. Family, spouses, in-laws. They even have a few designated for friends and coworkers. The sweetheart arrangements are mostly roses. He'd like some roses, but maybe more of a blend.

The clerk watches him poke around for a bit. She offers to make some recommendations for him and he politely refuses.

She suspects that he's shopping for a significant other. _No wedding ring. A new girlfriend maybe? He's eyeing everything so carefully._

"None of these are Eames," Bobby mutters under his breath after a second pass through.

"You can make the arrangement yourself too," the clerk suggests. "I think you probably have an idea of what you want." She points to the refrigerated case of flowers and some empty vases sitting on the counter.

"I think that would be a good idea. Thanks."

"Sure. Let me know if I can help."

He selects a vase and the flowers, and arranges them. He likes the result. He selects a card and pays for it all.

"I love the arrangement. Beautiful choices. I'm going to write those flowers down and make a couple more arrangements for the store. What's her name?" she asks Bobby.

"Alex."

"Girlfriend?"

"She's umm... A close friend."

"I'll name it, _'Alex's Natural Beauty'_."

He smiles. "Nice."

A few minutes later, he enters the hospital lobby with the flowers in hand and heads for the elevator.

**_x x x_**

After a little struggle, she's back in the wheelchair. She rolls the chair less than one foot forward and the bathroom lights come back on.

_Finally_, she grumbles.

At this point, she almost doesn't care about washing her hands, but she does it anyway.

She happens to glance up by accident and sees her reflection in the mirror.

_It's too much. _Scratches, swollen spots. Puffiness around her eyes. Bruises. Gauze covers the worst cuts.

She almost doesn't recognize herself.

_Malik left too many reminders. _

_She's not going to cry. _

Alex finishes and leaves the bathroom quickly. She nearly runs into another patient before she realizes how fast she's wheeling herself back to the room.

"Sorry," she mumbles and continues on, hoping the man hears her.

Once inside her room, she directs the chair toward the right side of the bed and locks the wheels.

She needs to lie down again. The aches and pains that are reduced with the medications seem to be returning.

She stares at the bed. _Maybe if I lean over far enough, I can just fall on it and climb the rest of the way in_.

As she's bracing herself to stand, she hears a voice behind her.

"Eames…hey."

She settles back in the chair and turns around to see Bobby enter her room with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

Looks like he shaved, showered and changed his suit since she last saw him.

_He is handsome. Lori was right about that._

_And he brought her flowers._

She doesn't feeling like smiling, but it's hard not to.

"Hi Bobby." She glances toward the bed she's planning to get into, and then back at him. "This sucks."

"I bet it does," he agrees.

"I've been unable to do anything on my own for over two weeks," she sighs.

"For what it's worth, you're handling it better than I could."

"Not exactly."

"You were…intending to get into the bed…right?" he prompts. He sets the flowers down on the physician's desk and takes a few steps closer.

"Yeah. Something like that."

"Well…umm… If you want to use me as a leaning post, something to grab ahold of while you get in, you're welcome to." It's an offer and there's no pressure.

Her family and the hospital staff try to do everything for her. The hospital doesn't know her like Bobby and her family does. In her family's defense, they're all pretty shaken up.

"Sure."

He moves the chair back to give her room to stand and locks the wheels. Next, he offers his arm for her hold so she can pull herself up.

After she's out of the chair, she feels a little unsteady. She doesn't mean to fall toward him, but it's unavoidable.

"Sorry."

"You're fine. How's your knee?"

She intended to take his shoulders, but she ends up grabbing his jacket lapels in order to keep herself standing.

"It's okay, I've got you." He has both hands on her arms, but he's prepared to catch her if needed.

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry…"

"Shhh… Don't worry."

She's almost ready to continue, until this blinding pain hits. It's mostly her knee and back, but there are these painful spasms hitting her in different spots.

Her body is sending her a big fat _'screw you' _message for the fall in the bathroom and the attempts to get herself back into the wheelchair.

She's wincing and gasping at this point and there's no question how much pain she's in from Bobby's point of view. He scoops her up into his arms and sets her down in the bed carefully.

Even when she's on the bed, she continues to gasp, groan and cry out. There is no good position for her to lie comfortably. It all causes pain.

Bobby touches her forearm.

_She's very warm. It could be anything. He'd better find a nurse._

Just as he starts toward the hallway, Lori arrives to check on her.

_Good timing._

She enters the room and immediately sees Alex in distress. "Oh, hon…what happened?"

"Had to go… Fell." It's the best she can do, but it's enough. She doesn't have to go into all the gory details.

"You should have called for someone."

"_I DID! __No one fucking showed up!_" she groans.

"_Really?_ I'll make sure that doesn't happen again," she answers, failing to hide the frustration in her tone.

Lori glances over at Bobby, who continues to look on with concern.

"She's going to be fine. But I'm going to need to check her over. Could you give us a few minutes?"

"Sure. I-I'll be in the waiting room." There's one last look at Alex just before he leaves.

"I'll come find you when we're done," Lori tells him.

When the door closes, Lori's eyes drift toward the new bouquet of flowers in the room and then to Alex. "You're pulling my leg… That man is _more_ than just a friend."

Alex is still squirming too much to respond.

"Sorry to tease, I'll get you something for the pain. You're going to be just fine, sweetie. I'll check you over and we'll get the doctor in here if necessary."

**x**

About forty minutes later, Bobby re-enters the room. "How are you feeling?"

"Better. Drugs are working. Sorry about before."

The doctor found no further injuries. Just some muscle spasms. She gave Alex a stronger dose and told her to rest. She thinks she should be able to use crutches by tomorrow.

"Sorry for what?" Bobby asks.

"Falling on you. Screaming… I'm sure there's more."

Bobby grins. "There's nothing to apologize for." He picks up the flowers he had set down by the physician's desk earlier and brings them over to her. "Here. These are for you."

"Thanks. They're beautiful."

"You're welcome. Is it okay if I hang out a little longer?"

She smiles. "I'd like that."

She reads the card, then sets the flowers and card on the table beside her bed.

**_To the strongest woman I know. _**

**_Hope you're out of here and feeling better soon._**

**_Always, _**

**_Bobby_**

**_x_**

Alex lies awake in the bed. According to the clock in the hallway, it's 11:00pm.

She had a nightmare earlier, woke up in a panic and then threw up. So light sleeping is about all she can handle. Just killing time until morning, which is when they said they'd discharge her. She can't wait.

Earlier tonight, her brother Jim came by to see her. Jim can always make her laugh, so that was a good visit.

Elliot Stabler stopped by a little later. He let her know that a couple of the officers caught Woods, one of Malik's men, who was trying to break into a car. Woods wasn't one of the creeps who sexually assaulted her when Malik wasn't around, but he was an asshole.

The most they can charge Drakes with is resisting arrest and false imprisonment. He'll probably get eighteen months.

She never saw Drakes hit Cole, even though she believes that it happened. Since they have no witnesses, they can't charge Drakes with assault.

The others remain at large.

She looks at the flowers Bobby brought for her.

She misses him. The time flies by with him here.

Even listening to him talk about work or random things that interest him is never boring.

As much as she loves seeing her family, they're so hurt by what happened to her. She worries about upsetting them.

Thoughts stir in her mind for a little while until she begins to drift to sleep.

**_x_**

She awakens about a half hour later. Her eyes drift over toward the chair in her room and she nearly jumps out of her skin.

_Someone is sitting there._

The chair has been moved a little further back from the foot of the bed and is set at an angle so he can watch her.

He's not saying a word, just staring.

No mask this time. His arm is propped on the armrest and he rests his face in his palm. It's dark in the room. It's hard for her to see him, much less describe any features.

It's him. No doubt in her mind.

But they both know she'll never be able to prove that he's the _same man_ who raped her._  
_

If she can get him to talk, she can ID the voice. It's unlikely he'll fall for that.

"What the hell are you doing here?" There's a lump in her throat and she's trying not to show how much he's getting to her by showing up. Her heart is pounding out of control.

Without a word, he stands up.

She quickly sees that he's wearing scrubs. She thinks she sees an ID tag too.

_That's how he got in. Sonofabitch. Who did he impersonate?_

_What the hell is he planning to do?_

"There are security cops on every floor! You could kill me, you're still not getting out of here alive, asshole!"

He sprays something toward her face before she can react to shield herself.

_Pepper spray._

While she's doubled over and trying to breathe, she hears him leave the room.

**_x x x_**

**_TBC…_**

**_Next, Chapter 10 - Prisoner_**


End file.
